The Dragon's March
by twentythirteen
Summary: To lead a war of Conquest, or to accept and defend his Birthright? Corrin finds that he cannot choose between the two, and so he forges his own path, aiming to subdue both Nohr and Hoshido and rebuild the two kingdoms the way he sees fit. However, Corrin finds that this path is lonely and painful, and, as his war drags on, he begins to question both himself and his idea of peace.
1. Decisions and Indecision

_Hello, and thanks for reading. This story loosely follows the Revelations route of Fire Emblem: Fates, but there will be a lot of major changes in the plot since I wasn't really a fan of the original story and I was bored, so I wrote this. For example, though Valla will still play a role, this story will focus more on the human conflicts within Fates rather than just having some sort of big, evil monster that is the cause of everything bad. The characters will more or less be the same, with the important exception of Corrin. In the games, Corrin is supposed to be an avatar, but instead of being a blank slate, he has a distinct (annoying) personality, which is why I decided to change it to make him more arrogant and less ignorant and saintly. He'll probably still be a bit annoying, but at least he won't be completely dumb like he is in the actual story. This story begins at the scene where Corrin is choosing between Nohr and Hoshido, and then diverges from the original story from there. Anyway, thanks again for reading, and without further ado..._

* * *

"I refuse."

Ryoma frowned and Xander's eyes widened as Corrin's words rang out over the clamor of the battlefield.

"You refuse?" the Hoshidan High Prince echoed. "You mean you won't join us? You won't claim your birthright, and fight beside your Hoshidan kin?"

"I will not. And I will not fight beside Nohr either," Corrin replied, his red eyes resolute and his wild, dark hair swaying in the breeze. He sat atop a white palfrey, Azura beside him on her own horse. They were positioned in between the royal siblings of Nohr and Hoshido, preventing the two sides from tearing each other apart.

"What are you saying?" Xander demanded. "We have been your family for your whole life, and you are choosing to abandon us?"

Corrin scowled. "I am not abandoning anyone. I am just choosing not to fight either one of you."

"It's not that simple!" Leo interjected from his position behind Xander.

"He's right, Little Prince," Xander agreed. "Nohr and Hoshido are sworn enemies. No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to convince Father to end his conquest. Our two nations will be at war no matter what, and it's futile for one man to try and change that."

"I know full well how intransigent Father is. Even so, you can't expect me to raise my blade against people who are my family by blood. My mother… She died protecting me. I couldn't repay her sacrifice by spilling the blood of her people."

"Then fight with us!" Ryoma said.

Corrin shook his head. "I cannot do that either. I definitely won't fight against the family I grew up with and have known all my life."

"Then just what do you intend to do?" Xander asked, his blade emanating dark energy as he clenched his fist around its hilt.

"If you won't heed my words, then I have no choice but to force you. I'll do whatever it takes to stop this unneeded conflict."

"So you _do_ intend to fight," Takumi observed from the Hoshidan side. "Then we are the ones with no choice. If you betray us, then you will die a traitor's death!"

Leo sighed as he rode up beside Xander. "See how quick they are to anger, Corrin? They don't think of you as family at all."

"That's not true!" Hinoka called out as she swooped in on her pegasus. "Corrin is our brother by blood, and your filthy Nohrian brainwashing spells won't change that!"

"Excuse me?"

"Enough of this," Corrin said, fed up. He drew his Yato, and the golden blade gleamed in the dim sunlight. "I've been babied my whole life, and I've never had the chance to make my own choices. Even now, you're all trying to force me to bend to your will… But hear this! I am Corrin, a Prince of Nohr as well as Hoshido. Therefore, it is only natural that I be able to overcome the greatest of odds. Even if you are all against me, I will prevail! I will crush both Nohr and Hoshido if I have to, and when you are thoroughly and utterly defeated, I will lift you back up and join your hands, whether you like it or not! Prepare yourselves!"

With that, Corrin pulled on the reins of his horse and bounded away from the royal siblings, Azura rushing after him.

"Corrin, wait!" Xander called out.

"My, my, he made such a bold speech and then ran off," Camilla said as she hefted her axe. "Should I go after him, Xander?"

"You won't have the chance!" Ryoma yelled as he launched himself at the Nohrians, his Rajinto crackling with electricity.

Xander barely blocked the blow with Siegfried, his arm going slightly numb as his sword made contact with Ryoma's electrifying blade. "We need to defeat these Hoshidan fools first! Then we can deal with Corrin!"

Corrin turned around and caught a quick glimpse of the scene as he galloped away, a frown on his slender face.

"Where are we going, Corrin?" Azura asked. "Was it really all right to leave them like that?"

Corrin grit his teeth. "I had no choice. We couldn't have taken all eight of them by ourselves, and so I needed to come up with another plan. We're going to defeat both armies instead."

Azura stared at him. "... I'm afraid I don't understand how defeating two armies is easier than fighting eight people."

"Well, if I'm being honest, we're not really up against two armies. The size of these two forces are about the same as a regiment at best. It looks like neither Ryoma nor Xander was expecting to fight a full-scale battle here."

"Right, but… That's still more difficult than taking on just the royal siblings, no?"

Corrin smirked. "We're not going to fight every single soldier here. This is where my ambiguity comes in. At the moment, neither the Nohrian nor the Hoshidan forces know which army I have sided with. First, we will go over to the Nohrian side of the battlefield, claiming to be allied with Nohr. Then, we will take out their commander and ride towards the Hoshidan side, using this as proof that we are loyal to Hoshido. Finally, when the Hoshidans accept us as an ally, we will kill their commander as well. With their command structure in tatters, the two sides will have no choice but to retreat."

Azura's expression was one of unease. "You realize this will most likely make you an enemy in the eyes of both sides, right?"

Corrin gripped his blade and the reins of his horse tighter. "I know… But it must be done. If Xander and Ryoma refuse to listen, then I will make them. Don't worry, Azura. I am every bit the tactician that Leo and Xander are, and so I will not lead us astray."

The two continued onwards, crossing the river which divided the battlefield at a shallow section, away from most of the fighting. When they made it over to the Nohrian side, a few of the black-armored soldiers gave them strange looks but made no move to attack.

 _Excellent,_ Corrin thought as he rode towards the camp the Nohrians had set up at the base of the cliff. _These fools won't know what hit them._

When the pair finally arrived at the Nohrian camp, they found that it was mostly empty. As Corrin dismounted from his horse, a middle-aged man with a silver mustache emerged from the main tent at the center of the camp tent. He wore the black Nohrian armor and had a short sword strapped to his side, and his pale, blue eyes lit up in surprise as he saw Corrin.

"Ah, Prince Corrin! You have returned," the man called out.

"Yes," Corrin replied, his hand inching towards his blade as Azura watched uneasily. "Would you be the one in command here?"

"Er, yes, Your Grace. I am Captain Redfield, and I have been placed in command of our forces by Crown Prince Xander."

"I see," Corrin said as he drew his sword. "Then prepare yourself."

"Your Grace?" the captain asked, but before he could react, Corrin lunged at him with a roar and slashed his throat open. The man fell to the ground, his blood staining the clay ground red.

Azura stared at the corpse, an expression of unease on her face.

"Sorry, but it was necessary," the prince said as he used his cape to clean the blood off his sword. "Now, we need to ride around the edge of the camp and head towards the Hoshidan side once I behead this man and take his head as an offering to Hoshido."

The flaps of the tent flew open, and a young man with brown hair emerged. He stared in shock at the scene, then drew his own sword. Unable to even form words, the youth cried out in agony and anger as he rushed Corrin.

Corrin ducked under the soldier's initial strike, and his dragonstone necklace began to glow. Azura watched as Corrin's left arm transformed into a draconic claw, and she grimaced as the prince drove his arm into the boy's stomach, impaling him upon the appendage. The defeated Nohrian gasped in pain and shock before Corrin used Yato to slide the body off his arm. The corpse fell to the ground, blood pouring out the gaping hole in its stomach.

Corrin frowned in disgust as he stared at his arm, which was now coated in red. He bent down and severed Captain Redfield's head with one clean stroke, then shoved it into one of his saddlebags. "Well, let's get moving."

Azura followed as Corrin mounted his horse and rode off towards the edge of the camp, intending to join forces with the Hoshidans and then repeat the same scene there. Azura watched the prince with curiosity and sorrow as they crossed the river again.

 _He must be taking his anger out on these soldiers,_ she realized as she looked upon the prince's solemn countenance.

As the pair approached the Hoshidan side, the soldiers did not even think twice about letting Corrin through. Neither he nor Azura made any threatening moves, and the presence of the blue-haired princess was probably enough to convince the Hoshidans that they were not enemies. Corrin and Azura rode towards the back of the battlefield, where, as expected, the Hoshidan headquarters were stationed.

This time, before Corrin could dismount, he was cut off by a man with blue hair and a pair of glasses. Corrin recognized him as Yukimura, Hoshido's finest tactician. Yukimura was flanked by four Hoshidan soldiers, and the tactician wore a neutral expression as he regarded the pair.

"Ah, Prince Corrin. What might you be doing here?"

"What does it look like? I'm joining Hoshido," Corrin replied as he fished the Nohrian captain's head out of his saddlebag. He tossed the severed head at Yukimura's feet.

The tactician glanced at it with disgust and contempt. "I see… So you've killed their commander. No wonder their forces look to be in such a disarray. However, I'm afraid that we will have to confiscate your weapon until this battle is over and I get word from King Ryoma that you have truly abandoned your Nohrian family."

"Impossible. I need to fight alongside them. I can't sit here and do nothing," Corrin replied as he grew irritated, hoping Yukimura wouldn't see through his deception.

"Oh? But you have done more than enough already," Yukimura countered as he prodded the captain's head with his sandaled foot. "Besides, this battle will be over soon now that you have removed their commander. There is no need for you to put yourself in any further danger."

Corrin's face darkened as he realized that Yukimura had figured out his ploy with ease, and his red eyes flashed dangerously. He bared his fangs and roared, "You dare try and outwit me?!"

Before Yukimura's guards could react, Corrin pushed his steed forward, bowling over Yukimura and stabbing one of the soldiers in the eye in the process.

"Let's go, Azura!" Corrin called out, but Azura was already urging her horse forward as well.

The two sped away from the Hoshidan camp. They headed away from the battlefield, leaving the clashing of swords and pained screams behind as they moved to higher ground.

"Damn it!" Corrin exclaimed, once they were a significant distance away. "I didn't expect anyone to see through my plan…"

"Your plan still worked," Azura said calmly as she turned her head. Corrin followed her gaze and saw that both the Hoshidan and Nohrian forces were beginning to regroup and retreat, heading off in opposite directions.

"Yes. Though I did not kill him, it appears I put Yukimura out of commission for the time being," Corrin noted as he and Azura stopped their mounts, allowing the creatures a brief rest.

"We were successful here… But what do we do now?" Azura wondered. "We have surely made enemies out of Nohr and Hoshido, and we have no army to defend ourselves."

"We need to set up a base of operations of some sort," Corrin answered as he watched the two armies retreat. "There are plenty of neutral city-states that do not like being caught up in this war, so they should sympathize with our cause. We could head to Izumo first, since it's the closest."

"But even then, there is no guarantee that they will help us. We do not have much to offer."

Corrin sighed. "I know that, Azura, but we have no other choice. If you thought this plan was doomed for failure, then why did you even come with me?"

Azura's golden eyes were filled with an indiscernible emotion. "That's a good question. I suppose I do not want to see Nohr and Hoshido fight either. In terms of our family situation, you and I are similar, so I sided with you. There's also… Something about you that makes me want to see where you will go. Perhaps it is because Yato chose you."

Corrin smirked. "You've got an eye for talent, then. Come, let's get going."

"Your Grace."

Corrin and Azura jumped in shock at the sudden voice, and Corrin drew his golden sword, preparing for battle. However, as Corrin wheeled his horse around, he was greeted with a familiar sight.

"Kaze? What…"

"I happened to overhear your conversation, Your Grace, and I wish to lend you my aid," Kaze said.

"Were you following us?" Azura asked.

"Never mind that," Corrin said. "If you heard our conversation, then you know you may have to fight against Hoshido, right? You would still join us?"

Kaze frowned and crossed his arms. "That is of no concern to me. It is my duty to help you in any way I can, and if you wish to end this war, then I will make sure that you achieve that goal."

Corrin raised an eyebrow. "Not that I am not glad to have your help, but why are you so eager to fight for me?"

Kaze's normally stoic expression became one of disbelief. "You saved my life, Your Grace. Do you not remember?"

"Ah, that's right," Corrin recalled. "But that was nothing but a whim, if I'm being honest. I enjoyed our spar, and so I decided to free you."

"Even so, I am grateful," Kaze said. "There is another thing… Surely you noticed that the other members of the royal family have their own retainers. I, however, had no one to serve. When my brother and Kagero were chosen to serve as King Ryoma's retainers, I was left out. I convinced myself that this was simply because I was too young, but I knew that was a lie… However, Queen Mikoto consoled me by telling me there would come a day where I would finally have a purpose. I believe she was speaking of this day, and of you, Your Grace."

"I see," Corrin replied with a smile. "Then I am glad to have you, Kaze. I am sure we will win many victories together."

"His Grace already has plenty of fine retainers, thank you very much," another voice called out.

Corrin was suddenly aware of the sound of hooves hitting the ground, and he was surprised to see Jakob and Felicia emerge out of the tree line.

"Apologies for our tardiness, Your Grace," Jakob greeted, then glared at Felicia. "But Felicia here just couldn't stay atop her horse."

"S-sorry!"

"You two…? How did you get here?" Corrin asked.

"We came with the rest of the Nohrian forces," Jakob answered. "When we heard that Crown Prince Xander was leading a mission to recover you, we simply had to come along. We then saw you exiting the battlefield, and so we broke off from the main force and raced here."

"You realize that I am not siding with Nohr, correct? I won't be aiding Hoshido either, but that means that I have likely made enemies out of both of them. You still want to join me?"

Jakob nodded. "Yes, Your Grace. We will follow you to the ends of the earth."

"We'll fight with you no matter what, Prince Corrin," Felicia agreed, her blue eyes filled with determination.

"Thank you, both of you," Corrin said. "I am glad that I have such loyal retainers. Together, we will defeat all who oppose me. I am sure of it."

Azura smiled. "Well, we still lack an army, but five is better than two, at least."

Corrin nodded. "Indeed it is. Now, we should get going. The sooner we get to Izumo, the better."

The group then headed off at a slower pace so that Kaze, the only one without a horse, could keep up. Since Jakob had prudently brought a map along, the five were able to navigate their way fairly easily. They continued along the path until night fell, and they were forced to make camp and rest for the time being.

After a short dinner consisting of some rations Jakob and Felicia had brought with them, Corrin sat down beside the fire, the glowing embers reflecting off his crimson eyes. He stared into the flames as the rest of his rudimentary fighting force began preparing for bed.

 _I talk big on the battlefield, but how much of a chance do I really have?_ The prince wondered as the flames danced in the dark. _And all those I left behind… Was this really the right choice?_

Corrin thought of Elise's smiling face, Leo's haughty laugh, Camilla's warm embrace, and Xander's caring guidance. He thought of his father, and what King Garon must be feeling right now.

 _He'll probably order everyone to hunt me down and kill me._

Corrin suddenly remembered a time when he was younger. He recalled he and his father out in the fields near Castle Krakenberg. It was when Corrin was about seven years old, and it was the first time he had confronted King Garon about the topic of his birth. Corrin closed his eyes, and the warmth of the flames took him back.

" _Father, I am not really your son, am I?" Corrin asked as he sat beside his father, the two of them sitting atop a hillside overlooking the rolling hills of Nohr._

" _... What makes you ask that?" Garon replied, his long, golden hair swaying in the night breeze._

 _Corrin looked at the ground. "Well… I don't look like Xander or Camilla or you… And I heard rumors."_

" _Hmm… Well, it is true. You are not my son by birth."_

 _Tears welled up in Corrin's eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. "Oh."_

 _King Garon glanced over at Corrin, then frowned. "Are you crying, boy? What have I told you about acting like a weakling?"_

" _S-sorry."_

" _Hmph," Garon grunted. "This is all your siblings' doing. They are far too soft on you."_

" _But Elise cries all the time," Corrin protested, not wanting to be seen as the only weak one. "And Leo came crying to me that one time he was scolded by our tutor."_

 _The Nohrian King sighed. "You are all weak, then. Are you satisfied now?"_

" _But… Camilla told me it's okay to cry, and that I can always come to her when I'm feeling sad. Xander said the same thing," Corrin pouted, refusing to accept defeat._

" _See? I told you your siblings are far too soft on you." Garon turned his gaze towards the stars, which shone brightly in the unusually-clear sky over the dark landscape. "However… I suppose that is not necessarily a bad thing."_

" _Huh?"_

" _Though you may not be my son by birth, you are still a Prince of Nohr, and you are still part of the royal family," Garon admitted. "I suppose, if you must, you can rely on your family when you are in trouble. No matter what happens, they will always be there for you… As will I."_

 _Corrin stared at his father in surprise, then broke out into a grin. "Thank you, Father. I promise I will do my best as a Prince of Nohr!"_

 _Garon couldn't help but smile as well. "Good. I will hold you to that, boy."_

The flames crackled, and Corrin was brought back to reality. His throat felt tight and his eyes were brimming with hot tears. _Damn it… Why did I have to think of that now, of all times?_

He rubbed his eyes, and his sorrowful expression was replaced by a look of determination.

 _The Father I once knew is gone. I don't know what happened to him, but he is a completely different person now. For his sake, and for all my siblings from both Nohr and Hoshido, I will end this war… Even if it means throwing away everything I've ever loved._


	2. The Dragon is Born

Xander took a steadying breath as he pushed open the doors to the throne room. Leo, Camilla, and Elise were trailing behind him as they prepared themselves for their father's wrath. When they entered the room, they found King Garon seated upon the throne, his head resting on his fist and Iago at his side.

"Well? Where is he?" Garon asked immediately.

Xander grimaced. "... We were unable to bring Corrin back with us."

"So, I expect that he is dead, then? Surely you wouldn't have let him escape if he had betrayed Nohr."

"He is not dead. He managed to evade capture by slaying the commanders of both the Hoshidan and Nohrian forces, forcing us to retreat. We don't know where he is at the moment," Xander replied, somewhat hesitantly.

Surprisingly, instead of shouting in anger, King Garon broke out into a hearty laugh. "So both armies were defeated by a mere boy? Idiots, the lot of you! Ha!"

Xander stared the floor in shame as Garon's laughter rang through the vast throne room.

"Well, as amusing as this is, I will not stand for it," King Garon finally said, his tone turning grave. "You will find Prince Corrin, and you will execute him for treason. We are already at war with Hoshido, so failure in this matter is unacceptable. We cannot afford distractions, especially not a rogue prince."

Xander gathered his courage before speaking. "But Father, I am sure that I can convince Corrin to come back if -"

"Silence, you incompetent fool!" Garon roared. "I gave you an order, and you will carry it out. Now, begone. I don't want to look at you failures any longer than I have to."

Xander bowed before leaving the throne room, his siblings in tow. Once they entered the royal courtyard and were a safe distance away from King Garon, Leo spoke up.

"So, are we actually doing this?"

"Of course not," Camilla replied. "Corrin is not a traitor, and I refuse to believe he would turn on us. You all heard him, didn't you? He said he wouldn't join Hoshido."

"But he also said he wouldn't fight with us," Xander countered. "If he opposes us, that makes him a traitor. After all we have done for him, he still refuses to join us…"

"You have to look at it from his perspective," Leo pointed out. "Those Hoshidans are also his siblings, technically. It was also revealed to him that Nohr killed both his birth father and mother, so it's natural that he would be confused."

"Yes, but…" Xander sighed. "It is as you say, Leo. I suppose I am just letting my frustrations get the better of me."

"Well, I won't fight against him," Elise chimed in. "There's no way I'd do that, even if Father ordered it!"

"Disobeying Father's orders is not such a simple task, though," Leo said. "One wrong move, and it could spell death for us."

"... Should we really be fighting for someone who would kill us if we failed him?" Camilla asked. "We must think of our choices. On one hand, there is our brother, whom we have loved and who loves us. On the other, there is our cruel, cold father who sees us as nothing more than tools."

"That's not true!" Xander shouted, and his siblings turned to stare at him, shocked by his outburst. He looked away, embarrassed that he lost his temper. "It's just… It's just not true."

With that, Xander walked away, leaving the remaining Nohrian royals to themselves.

"What's his problem?" Elise pouted.

"You have to remember that Xander has known Father the longest out of all of us," Camilla provided. "There was a time when Father was not the man he is now. You may not remember it, Elise, but Leo does, right?"

The youngest prince nodded. "Father was not always this… Distorted. He was always strict and firm, but he was undeniably kind as well. Fifteen years ago, I would have never expected Father to say the things he does now. He has changed, but Xander cannot, or refuses, to see that."

"But Corrin has seen it, and so have we," Camilla said. "We can't go on like this. If we stay on this path, Hoshido, Nohr, Corrin, and even we will all suffer. The only winner will be Father and his insatiable bloodlust."

Leo frowned. "But… What do we do? It won't be easy to disobey Father, and Corrin's cause is doomed to fail. We can't just join him and expect everything to be alright."

Camilla's eyes were uncharacteristically serious. "We'll have to make a decision. Will we fight and live with our Father, and sell our souls in the process? Or will we fight and die with our brother, with our hearts beating proudly until our very last moments? I can't tell you what to do, Leo. We must all make our own decision on this matter individually."

After imparting these words, Camilla also exited the courtyard, leaving Leo to ponder his sister's questions.

"So that's how it is, huh? What do you think, Elise?"

Leo turned around, but found that his younger sister was already gone.

* * *

Ryoma sat at the head of the table in the Castle Shirasagi's situation room, surrounded by his siblings. _Save for one,_ the prince thought sourly, recalling Corrin's actions a couple weeks prior.

"What's taking him so long?" Takumi groaned. "I have better things to do than sit and wait around for people. If he doesn't -"

"Patience, young prince," Yukimura interrupted as he entered the room with the assistance of a cane. The tactician winced as he gingerly sat down at the table.

"Ah, Yukimura," Ryoma greeted. "How fare your injuries? Are you feeling any better?"

"Thank you for your concern, King Ryoma, but I am fine," Yukimura replied. "Let us get to the matter at hand. Things are quiet on the Nohrian front, but I do have news of Prince Corrin from our spies. It appears that he has arrived in Izumo."

"Izumo? That neutral nation?" Hinoka asked.

"Yes," Yukimura confirmed. "My guess is that he wishes to enlist their help in his futile struggle."

"But Izumo's military forces are meager at best," Ryoma said as he furrowed his brow. "Surely Corrin can't expect to make do with just that."

"Indeed. He plans to visit all the neutral nations and city-states who are unhappy with Nohrian or Hoshidan rule, and convert them to his cause. Therefore, we must anticipate his next moves before he makes them in order to bring him to justice."

"Hmm… Let's see. The only places I can think of off the top of my head are the Kitsune Hamlet, the Wind Tribe, Cheve, the Wolfskin on Mount Garou, and maybe the Ice Tribe in Nohr," Ryoma supplied. "All these places are either neutral or do not like their current position."

"Correct, Your Grace," Yukimura agreed. "Those are the biggest, and the most likely places where our traitorous prince will strike. Therefore, we will position our forces at these locations."

"Wait," Takumi interrupted, "this plan seems idiotic to me. If we concentrate our military strength to catch one person who isn't even that much of a threat, what will we do once Nohr attacks? And why can't we just go to Izumo and defeat Corrin there?"

"You lack patience, Prince Takumi," Yukimura chided again. "I was just about to address those concerns. First of all, we will not be putting all of our military strength into this task. On the contrary; we will only be diverting a small portion of our forces to catching Prince Corrin. Our main army will remain in its current formation. As for your second concern, we _will_ attempt to cut Prince Corrin off at Izumo. In fact, I think you yourself would be best suited for this task, Your Grace."

"Me?" Takumi replied. "Well, if you insist. I suppose I would enjoy putting an arrow through that traitor's skull."

"I thought we agreed that we wouldn't kill him, Takumi," Ryoma said.

Takumi sighed. "Fine, whatever. Don't expect me to go easy on him, though. If he gets in my way, I'll show him the true meaning of pain."

Yukimura then turned to Ryoma. "King Ryoma, I would like you to go to Cheve and enlist their help. Their conflict is with Nohr, not with us, so I am sure they will be sympathetic to our cause. Cheve has the most military strength out of all the places you listed, and if the King of Hoshido himself goes to ask for their help, they will have no choice but to accept."

Ryoma frowned. "That's all well and good, but if I am at Cheve, who will lead our forces here?"

"Princess Hinoka," Yukimura replied, and Hinoka sat up in surprise. "Of course, she will have me to help her, so you do not have to worry, Your Grace."

Ryoma nodded, then turned to his sister. "Can you do it, Hinoka?"

"Of course!" she replied confidently. "Don't worry about a thing! Just beat those Nohrian scum and bring Corrin back, and I'll make sure things hold up over here."

"Good," Ryoma said, then stood up. "Well, now that we all have our assignments, let's get to it."

"Um, w-what about me?" Sakura piped up. "I wasn't told to do anything."

"Oh, that's right," Ryoma replied as he held his chin in his hand. "You could stay here with Hinoka, I suppose."

"Well, um, I w-was hoping that I could go with Takumi, actually," Sakura said, glancing furtively at her more abrasive brother.

Takumi raised an eyebrow. "With me? Are you sure? It could be dangerous."

"Ah, you want to see Corrin, is that it?" Ryoma asked.

Sakura blushed. "W-well, I…"

"That's fine," the Hoshidan King said with a smile. "If you and Takumi can convince Corrin to join us instead of fighting us, then all the better."

"Right!" Sakura exclaimed with a determined look. "I'll do my best!"

Takumi sighed. "I doubt we can do that. You guys are far too optimistic."

"It's times like this when we most need optimism," Ryoma replied. "Now, let's go. We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

* * *

"Well, I'd simply love to help, but I'm afraid we can't," Izana said with a smile.

Corrin frowned. "Why not?"

Corrin, along with his four allies, were seated in Castle Izumo's lavish dining room as they spoke with the city-state's archduke, Izana. The castle was situated above the ground, nestled in a pair of gigantic trees, and if one were to look out the window, he would be able to glimpse the lush countryside and the bustling city of Izumo in its full glory.

"We can't spare the troops," Izana answered. "Our army is small enough as it is, so we can't be giving away soldiers to strangers, can we?"

"And that's exactly the problem," Corrin stated, frustrated. "When Nohr's forces get here, they will burn your town and your castle to the ground. Your pathetic excuse for an army won't stand a chance."

Izana frowned exaggeratedly. "If our army is so pathetic, then how can it help you?"

Corrin stood up, smirking as he puffed his chest out. "I am Corrin, a Prince of Nohr and a Prince of Hoshido. I am spoken of far and wide as the greatest tactician who ever lived, and whenever we visit any towns, peasants flock to me, begging to hear of how I single-handedly defeated two entire armies."

"When did all this happen?" Felicia whispered to Jakob, but she only received a curt 'shush!' in reply.

"If you lend me your forces, I can surely bring down both Hoshido and Nohr, and prevent places like Izumo from being torn apart in their conflict," Corrin continued. "If they see that you placed your trust in me, then other nations like yours will begin to believe in me as well. Soon, I will have an army to rival that of Hoshido's and Nohr's."

When Corrin was finished, Izana laughed. "My, you certainly don't lack confidence in yourself, I'll give you that. However, your perception of events and the reality of things may not be the same, you know. Even if I lend you my troops, there is a good chance that you will be crushed anyway, and then Nohr will come to punish me for aiding you."

"But you'll be destroyed even if you don't give me any help! Don't you understand that?" Corrin shouted, before he regained his composure. "If you don't think that I am capable of victory, then why did you even invite me into your castle? Why didn't you turn me away?"

Izana's gaze dropped to Corrin's side. "Is that Yato, by any chance?"

"Huh? Oh, this?" Corrin drew his sword. The divine blade glowed brightly as the prince held it up.

"Ah, wonderful!" Izana exclaimed as he watched, captivated by the sword. He then grew more serious. "It seems Yato has chosen you as its wielder, Prince Corrin… And, as the prophecies say, Yato's wielder has a great destiny ahead of him."

"Truly? Then all the more reason why you should join me."

Izana chuckled again. "You misunderstand me, Prince. When I say 'great,' I do not mean 'good.' It simply means that you have an important role to play in coming events. I do not know whether that role will be one of victory, defeat, happiness, or sadness."

Corrin eyes grew hard. "I see. However, I will ensure that my 'great destiny' is one of success. Though Yato may have chosen me, I make my own fate."

Izana smiled, his expression conveying a hint of mystery and curiosity. "Is that so? Interesting. Maybe I will take a chance on you and Yato, Prince Corrin. I can lend you about one hundred troops. Will that do?"

Corrin returned Izana's smile and sheathed his blade. "Yes, Archduke. Thank you for your generosity. I swear to you that I will be victorious."

"Ha! I wish you luck, then. Now, will you be off, or would you care to stay another night? I wouldn't mind."

"That's gracious of you, but we should get going. Every second we waste just helps our enemies. If we don't build up our army as soon as possible, then we could risk being caught and destroyed by a larger force."

"Understandable," Izana said. "I will go have your soldiers prepared. In the meantime, why don't you go have a look around the city? I am sure you and your companions would enjoy it!"

Corrin agreed, and his band headed out of the castle and into the city of Izumo to wait for Izana's preparations to finish. The group walked through the markets, gawking at vendors selling strange goods and taking in the new sights and smells. The experience was especially poignant for Corrin, as he had spent his entire life inside the walls of Castle Krakenberg and the Northern Fortress.

"Your Grace, you should try this," Kaze said when the group was stopped at a small ramen stand. "It's quite good."

"Oh, please. Nothing could compare to my special soup, which I have made for His Grace a number of times. That swill wouldn't even register on his refined taste buds," Jakob parried.

"I don't know, Jakob. This might be better than your soup!" Felicia exclaimed.

Corrin couldn't help but smile. "Thank you, but I'm full." He then turned to Azura, who was looking off into the distance. "Are you all right, Azura?"

"Hm? Oh, yes. I thought I saw something, but I am sure it's nothing."

"What did you see?" Corrin asked. "It wasn't an enemy, was it?"

Azura frowned. "Well, I thought it was -"

The songstress cut her sentence short as the crowd around them began to grow restless. People began mumbling, and some of them started walking hurriedly away from the main square.

"This isn't good," Corrin said. "Hoshido must have realized that we would go to Izumo, and so they sent a force to cut us off. It must have been that damn Yukimura… Damn it, I should have killed him when I had the chance!"

"What do we do, Your Grace?" Kaze asked as he readied a fistful of shurikens.

Corrin thought for a moment, then nodded. "Well, they're obviously here looking for us, so that gives us the advantage. This is a relatively large city, so there are plenty of places for us to hide. We'll find a tall building to overlook the paths into the city and to the castle, and then we will pick them off, one by one."

Kaze nodded. "I have been specially trained for missions like this. Leave it to me."

"Good," Corrin said as he set his eyes on a clocktower in the distance. "Jakob and Felicia are also skilled with throwing knives, so they should be able to help. I'm afraid Azura and I won't be of much use unless we're up close."

"I can use my singing to reinvigorate us," Azura informed them. "My song has special qualities, so I should be able to make a small difference."

The group then headed off towards the tower, climbing up the stairs in the inside of the structure and then hiding out on near the top. They crouched, hidden by the walls of the tower. Corrin poked his head out and saw a force of about fifteen soldiers entering the city. Though they were still some distance away, he could clearly make out Takumi at the head of the group.

 _So, that arrogant bastard thinks he can defeat me with a force of fifteen? I'll make him pay for that mistake,_ Corrin thought as he watched Takumi's band of soldiers move through the city. The streets had mostly been cleared by now, though a few people still lingered about.

Corrin sat in silence for a few minutes, then turned to his group. "We should wait to attack until Izana is finished gathering our soldiers, or maybe Takumi will give up and leave before then. There's no need to get into a conflict right now."

"Agreed," Kaze said. "I should check on their position, just in case."

However, as the ninja stuck his head out to glance at the troop positioning, a glowing, blue arrow shot towards him, barely missing his head. Kaze quickly ducked back behind the wall.

"How did they know we were here?!" Jakob asked. "Were you not stealthy enough, Ninja?"

Kaze bit his lip. "It must have been one of the civilians. They might have seen us go up here and then told Prince Takumi."

"It was probably the ramen stall owner," Felicia said as she glared at Jakob. "You said that his food was 'swill,' Jakob."

"What? You cannot possibly be saying this is my fault!"

Their bickering was interrupted when Takumi called out to them.

"Corrin! Surrender now, and I promise we won't kill you!"

Corrin cautiously peeked his head over the wall and saw Takumi and his soldiers standing at the base of the tower. Corrin also noticed that Sakura was with them, though the princess looked nervous and refused to meet his eyes.

"Fool!" Corrin replied. "Our reinforcements will be here soon. Unless you want to be crushed by a force of one hundred soldiers of Izumo, I suggest you leave!"

"Ha! You expect me to believe that?" Takumi derided. "This is your last chance. If you don't surrender now, I will have my men storm this tower and take you down by force."

"Suit yourself, then. You'll wish you hadn't crossed me when this is over," Corrin growled as he hid back behind the wall.

"What now?" Azura asked. "If Takumi's men try and come up here, we will need to stand up to fight them, exposing ourselves. If we do that, Takumi will shoot us from down below."

"We'll have to fight on the stairs, then," Corrin answered. "We'll have the advantage of the higher ground, and the staircase curves around the tower to the right, in a sort of 'C' shape. Therefore, for the soldiers trying to storm the tower, it will be difficult for them to use their weapons if they are right-handed, which I'm assuming is most of them. Their numbers advantage is also negated because of how narrow the staircase is. I chose this position for exactly this type of situation."

The group then opened the door to the staircase and positioned themselves so that Corrin was at the front and Azura was in the back. In between were those capable of throwing projectiles. Corrin had set up this formation so that the heaviest hitter would be at the front, and he would be supported by Kaze's shurikens and Jakob's and Felicia's knives. Azura's song would also keep them energized.

The clamor of boots on the stone staircase rang out, and Corrin tightened his grip on Yato. "They're coming. Prepare yourselves!"

The first soldier appeared, wielding an iron katana. This soldier fell to Corrin's divine blade, and he tumbled down the stairs after one of Kaze's shurikens grazed his face and Yato pierced his chest. The next two soldiers met similar fates, and it was only at the fourth where Corrin's formation was truly tested.

A man with messy brown hair and a katana appeared, and Azura's golden eyes lit up. "Corrin, that man is Hinata. He is one of Takumi's retainers, and he is exceptionally skilled with the blade. Be on your guard."

Hinata rushed at Corrin, dodging a shuriken in the process. He stabbed at Corrin and managed to graze the prince's arm, but he was quickly repelled by a flurry of knives. However, Hinata quickly rebounded and slashed at Corrin. Corrin blocked his blade with Yato, causing a resounding clang to echo throughout the staircase.

"You're pretty good," Hinata praised as the two locked blades, each one struggling to overpower the other.

"You're not so bad yourself," Corrin replied, then smirked.

The red-eyed prince suddenly let up his resistance and ducked, causing Hinata to stumble forward. Since he had lost his balance, Takumi's retainer could not avoid Kaze's shuriken, and as the metal throwing star embedded itself in his shoulder, Hinata fell down the staircase. A series of crashes resounded through the staircase as Hinata rolled roughly down the stairs, taking a couple soldiers who were behind him down as well.

Corrin's victory was short-lived, as a javelin suddenly came out of nowhere and slashed open the prince's right shoulder. Corrin gasped in pain as he toppled forward, but his cape was grabbed by Kaze, preventing him from falling down the stairs. A woman with a blue ponytail and a scowl on her face appeared, a naginata clenched firmly in her hand.

"Tch, looks like I missed," she observed as Corrin got to his feet.

"That's Oboro, another one of Takumi's retainers," Azura informed. "She is also highly skilled."

Corrin grit his teeth angrily as his shoulder throbbed in agony. "You'll pay for that, you foul creature."

"Sure, if you can even touch me," Oboro countered as she held out her naginata. "Now die, Nohrian scum!"

Corrin was able to fight off her weapon, but Oboro herself was out of his range. The prince's sword arm was also suffering due to his injury, and Oboro had managed to dodge most of the projectiles that had been thrown at her. _Looks like Takumi's retainers are no joke…_

The naginata suddenly slid past Yato and bit into Corrin's armor, piercing his skin near his right breast. A well-timed knife forced Oboro to dodge and prevented her from doing any more damage, but she was far from beaten.

"I'm afraid I'm running low on knives, Your Grace," Jakob called out.

"Me too," Felicia echoed.

Corrin snarled in anger. "Fine, then. I'll finish this myself… I've had enough of this bitch."

The dark-haired prince roared a battle cry, and his dragonstone necklace began to heat up and glow. A scaly tail emerged from Corrin's backside, and the prince leapt towards his opponent. Oboro, too shocked to react, was thrown backwards as the tail slammed into her stomach. She grunted in pain as she was smashed into the wall of the tower, and her body went limp as she rolled down the stairs and collapsed at the entrance to the tower. The few soldiers that were left watched the scene with horror, and they hurriedly ran out of the tower when Corrin roared at them.

With the last of his opponents gone, Corrin sat down on one of the steps, his tail dissipating with a brief flash of light. The prince panted as he tried to suck in air, his body aching from his various injuries. _It looks like even a partial transformation takes a lot of energy out of me._

His allies quickly huddled around him. "Are you all right, Your Grace?" Jakob asked.

"I hear shouting outside," Azura said. "That must be our reinforcements."

The group descended the tower, and when they exited the building, they found that Izana's soldiers had indeed arrived.

"What are you talking about!" Takumi demanded as he confronted Izana and the relatively large force of soldiers assembled behind the archduke.

"As I said, this is a neutral territory. Sorry, but you can't come in here with your soldiers and do whatever you please," Izana told the Hoshidan prince.

Takumi clenched his fists as he whirled around to see Corrin and his group. "Damn it all!"

"It's over, you imbecile," Corrin said with a smirk, in spite of his injuries. "I told you this would happen."

"Shut up!" Takumi yelled as he grit his teeth. "Fuck! I can't believe I lost to you, of all people!"

"Oh, you're hurt!" Sakura called out to Corrin as she noticed his injuries. She grasped her staff and began concentrating. "Let me heal that for you."

Corrin smiled at her. "Thank you, Sakura."

"Are you insane?! Stop helping the enemy, Sakura!" Takumi called out.

Corrin sighed. "I told you, I'm not your enemy."

"Is that so? Then why'd you trash my soldiers!"

"You attacked me first."

"Because you betrayed Hoshido!"

"I did not betray anyone," Corrin insisted. "I plan on ending this war, not aiding one side or another. I also gave you a chance to join me… An offer which still stands, by the way."

Takumi scoffed at that. "As if I'd ever join _you_."

"I'll join you," Sakura said as she finished healing Corrin. She then looked away shyly. "I-if you'll have me, that is…"

"Sure. We could use an excellent healer like you," Corrin replied as he flexed his upper body muscles, surprised at how well they had healed.

"R-really? Thank you!"

Corrin chuckled as he patted her on the head. "I should be the one thanking you… Sister."

Sakura's smile grew wider, and Takumi groaned. "Sakura! Don't be taken in by his kind words!"

"I don't know, Prince Takumi," Hinata started from where he was being healed by one of Izana's soldiers. "They seem all right to me."

Takumi scowled. "Did I ask you?"

"Come now, don't be so prickly," Izana cut in. "Aren't you and Prince Corrin supposed to be brothers? Why don't you help him out, Prince Takumi?"

"I understand if you're scared," Corrin said. "If you join us, you might have to fight both Hoshidan and Nohrian forces. It will undoubtedly be harder than anything you've done before, so if you're not up to the task, just say so."

"Are you kidding me? I fear no man from Nohr or Hoshido!" Takumi declared.

"Oh? Care to put that statement to the test?"

Takumi frowned, then sighed. The way things stood now, his only options were to join Corrin or become a prisoner of war. "Fine… Since you defeated me here, I guess I can give you a little help as a reward. Besides, if you really want to stop this war, then I suppose you're not really as bad as the rest of your Nohrian kin. I also love a good challenge. This war was too easy up until this point anyway."

Corrin nodded, then grinned. "Good. Welcome to our army, Brother."

* * *

 _A/N: So that concludes chapter two. Sakura was the first to join Corrin in Revelations and always seemed to have a soft spot for him, so it makes sense for her to want to help Corrin here as well. Takumi in Revelations also isn't as confrontational as he is in Conquest, probably because Corrin isn't openly siding against Hoshido (and we all know that Takumi is a tsundere anyway). Also, the Hoshidans won't kill Takumi or Sakura, so it isn't as if they are putting their lives in mortal danger or betraying their country by joining Corrin. Sakura and Takumi (and also Elise) are the youngest and most 'immature' of Corrin's siblings, which is why it wasn't too difficult to convince them to join. However, things may get harder on that front soon enough..._


	3. Brewing Storms

Xander glanced up from his book as he heard a knocking on his door. He frowned as he got up from his desk and moved to see who it was. _I thought I made it clear that I was not to be disturbed._

The Crown Prince opened the door and was greeted with Iago's pale, disturbing face. The sight only made Xander's mood fouler. "What do you want?"

"Now, now, no need to use that harsh tone, Your Grace," Iago chided. "I was sent by the king himself. He wants to know why our troops have not been deployed as of yet."

"What are you talking about? Hans' forces are marching towards Hoshido as we speak."

"Yes, but it is Your Grace's army that we are discussing," Iago clarified. "King Garon would like to know why you haven't dispatched your soldiers yet."

"Because I am still coming up with a plan of attack," Xander replied. "Are we done here?"

Iago smirked. "Is that so? I think there may be another reason why you have not deployed your forces yet… You are reluctant to fight your traitorous brother, no?"

Xander grabbed Iago's robes roughly, yanking the sorcerer off his feet. Iago yelped in surprise, but could do nothing to resist but grasp feebly at Xander's arm.

"Do not overstep your bounds, fool," the Crown Prince warned with a glare before roughly tossing Iago onto the stone floor.

Xander slammed his door shut, blocking out the sound of Iago scurrying away. The sorcerer would undoubtedly report this incident to King Garon, and Xander was sure he would get an earful about his disorderly conduct soon enough. _But I've got bigger things than that to worry about._

He sat down at his desk, trying to refocus his attention on the book he was reading. However, he found himself unable to concentrate, and his thoughts drifted to what Iago had said to him. _Corrin… Of course he is the reason why I have been slow to act. No matter how much I try to deny it, I cannot bring myself to fight my brother. Though Father may have ordered me to hunt down and eliminate Corrin, I don't know if I can actually do that…_

The blond prince clenched his fist and grit his teeth in frustration. _What kind of worthless Crown Prince am I? I can't even bring myself to defend my country from one man?_

He thought back to that day. _Corrin said he would end this war… But that isn't possible unless he is willing to kill our father. We all know that Father will not give in to Corrin's demands, and therefore, the only way to stop Nohr from attempting to conquer Hoshido is King Garon's death._

Xander then thought of his father. He could vividly picture King Garon's sinister grin, his eerily-white hair, his unnaturally cold eyes, and his skin, turned dark by his experiments in black magic when he first started worshipping Anankos. At times, Xander wondered if his father was still the same man he used to be.

 _No, it doesn't matter,_ Xander convinced himself. _Even if he has changed, he is still my father, and my king. I could not betray him and my country for anything._

The Crown Prince sighed as he looked out his large window and out into the Nohrian night. The lights from the capital city, Windmire, were sharp against the blackness of the night.

 _I cannot betray my duties as Crown Prince of Nohr… But can I betray my duties as a brother?_

* * *

"It should be situated at the top," Takumi said as he pointed at a lush mountain lined with cherry blossoms and other Hoshidan flora.

Corrin squinted as he tried to get a good view of the peak, but it seemed that the Kitsune Hamlet was hidden among the cherry blossoms. "And you say there are Hoshidan soldiers there already?"

"Most likely. Yukimura sent them to all the locations you were likely to visit."

"I see." Corrin grabbed the reins of his steed and prepared to ride up the mountain. "We'll just have to defeat them, then. Are they about the same number you brought with you to Izumo?"

"Well… Probably not…"

"Yukimura told Takumi to take more troops, b-but he was so confident that he could defeat you by himself," Sakura explained.

Takumi blushed embarrassedly. "Whatever! You hiding your retainers away and telling them not to fight didn't help me either, Sakura."

"I j-just didn't want them to fight against Corrin, that's all," Sakura said as she glanced at Subaki and Hana behind her. The two were currently embroiled in some sort of argument, judging by Hana's angry expression and Subaki's frown.

"That's in the past," Corrin cut in. "All that matters now is that we are on the same side, so let's just get up this mountain and do here what we came to do, all right?"

"Yeah, fine," Takumi replied offhandedly as he forged on ahead, his two retainers trailing behind him.

The group continued onwards, with the four royals and their retainers leading the hundred or so soldiers that Corrin had obtained from Izana. The survivors from Takumi's group had also joined, and though they were not many in number, Corrin was grateful for any help he could get. He assumed the Hoshidans hadn't gotten word of Takumi's defeat yet, so he hoped that the group stationed in the Kitsune Hamlet hadn't been reinforced.

 _Or, better yet, they were driven out by the Kitsune themselves._ From what Corrin had read and heard about the Kitsune, it appeared that they were a whimsical group who did not take orders from anyone. Hoshido had tried numerous times to bring them to heel, but the Kitsune had repelled every military expedition thus far. _Though, to be fair, there haven't been any serious attempts to defeat them yet._

Corrin hoped that he could use Hoshido's past transgressions against the Kitsune to get them to join his own cause, but he doubted that would be enough. He figured that he would just have to hear what the clan wanted first hand so that he could tailor his persuasion techniques to cater to their specific needs.

A cloud of smoke and the sudden appearance of Kaze snapped Corrin out of his thoughts.

"Three riders approach, Your Grace."

Corrin stopped his horse. "Are they here for us, or do they just happen to be taking the same path? What nation do they ride for?"

"I'm afraid I don't know, Your Grace," Kaze answered. "They are all wearing cloaks, but they do not appear to be making any threatening moves towards us… There is also the fact that we have over one hundred soldiers, so I don't think they pose a serious threat to us."

"Interesting. I think I'll go meet them myself."

"Your Grace! You can't!" Jakob shouted as he made his way over. "What if they are assassins?"

"By the gods, your butler is loud," Takumi complained. He then turned to Jakob. "Not to worry, my silver-haired friend. I think I'll go and see what the commotion is about as well, so Corrin will be fine as long as I'm there."

Jakob seemed unconvinced. "As you say, Prince Takumi… All the same, Felicia and I will accompany you."

Azura seemed uneasy. "Jakob could be right, Corrin. I can't imagine that anyone approaching us would be wanting to help us, given our current situation. I'd like to come with you, just to be safe."

"I'm coming too!" Sakura exclaimed. "I-if that's all right, that is."

Corrin nodded. "That's fine. Let's go."

After letting the column of soldiers know what they were doing, Corrin and his small group rode down to where the three riders were supposedly approaching from. When they got towards the end of the column, they could indeed see a trio of cloaked figures on horseback.

"They seem quite unafraid, riding towards us like that," Azura observed.

"That's just because they can't see me from this distance," Takumi replied haughtily. "If they knew that the great Prince Takumi were here, I'm sure they would be exercising far more caution."

"Oh, please," Corrin said. "If they aren't afraid of me, someone who has actual renown on the battlefield, they certainly won't be afraid of you."

"'Renown?' What renown? You were locked up in Nohr for all of your life!" Takumi countered.

"And yet I already have two victories under my belt," Corrin smirked. "One of which was earned when I thrashed you, if you remember."

"Please! I didn't even receive a single scratch that battle!"

"Yes, because you were too cowardly to face me head on."

"Why you -"

"If you two are finished with your 'who can be the most arrogant' competition," Azura interrupted, "the riders are approaching."

Sure enough, while Corrin and Takumi were bickering, the three horsemen had approached and were now within striking distance. Takumi drew his Fujin Yumi and held it out threateningly.

"You three! Not a step closer," the Hoshidan prince warned.

However, one of the riders ignored his command and continued onwards. The other two tried to grab the stray horseman, but he managed to gallop away from them, heading straight towards Corrin's party.

"Fool, don't you listen?" Takumi spat as he drew his blue bowstring back.

"Wait!" Corrin called out, holding up his hand. He then urged his own steed towards the approaching horseman.

The rest of Corrin's group watched in shock as the horseman acrobatically leapt off his horse and jumped towards Corrin, forcing the dark-haired prince to catch the cloaked figure. Jakob and Kaze immediately moved towards their lord, their weapons drawn. However, they stopped when the cloak fell away from the leaping horseman's face, revealing her to be a young girl with curly, blonde pigtails and a cheerful smile on her face.

"Corrin! I've finally found you!" Elise cried out in joy as she pressed her face against Corrin's torso.

"I thought so… Elise! You shouldn't do things like that! That was dangerous!" the prince scolded, though he could not hide the smile that also spread across his face.

"Elise…? As in Princess Elise of Nohr?" Takumi wondered aloud.

"I've come to join you!" Elise exclaimed. "And I brought my retainers with me! Look!"

Sure enough, the other two figures threw off their cloaks, revealing themselves to be Effie and Arthur.

"Apologies for the deception, Your Grace," Arthur said to Corrin. "But we had to make sure that no foul rogues on the road learned our true identities."

"I see. Thank you two for keeping Elise safe," Corrin said, then turned to his sister. "So… How did you get away from Castle Krakenberg?"

Elise grinned. "I told them I was going on a trip for a while. Nobody seemed to want to pry since they're all busy with their war preparations, so I'm sure they won't notice me missing."

Corrin sighed. "Elise… You do know what you have done, right? You can't go back there now. Father will execute you as a traitor."

"I know…" Elise replied, her face falling a bit. "But it doesn't matter. As long as I'm here with you, I'll fight beside you! I don't care if Father disapproves!"

Corrin smiled at her. "Well, I'm glad at least one of my siblings understands that I'm not some sort of evil villain."

"Hey!" Takumi called out. "Did you forget about us already, you ungrateful bastard?"

"Of course not. Elise, this is Takumi and Sakura, my brother and sister from Hoshido," Corrin introduced.

Sakura greeted Elise meekly while Takumi just glared at her, but the blonde princess smiled brightly at them.

"Nice to meet you! Thanks for taking care of my brother for me!"

"Well, now that that's over, we should get moving again," Corrin said as he picked Elise up by the waist and set her down from his horse. "The Hoshidans are undoubtedly poisoning the Kitsune against us as we speak."

The group then continued onwards, with Corrin and his siblings leading the column once again. Elise spent most of the ride up the mountain talking with Azura, the blonde princess' animated voice exclaiming something or other every now and then. Corrin figured that Azura had told Elise about her actual identity, something she had revealed to Corrin some time back.

After close to an hour, the group finally reached the top of the mountain and were met with the sight of Kitsune Hamlet. Cherry blossoms lined the pathway towards the village, and the ground was littered with pink and purple petals. The wooden gates were wide open, and though Corrin felt pairs of eyes watching him a few times on the journey up, no Kitsune had made any move to stop them as of yet.

"Isn't it strange that we haven't seen a single fox yet?" Takumi said, echoing Corrin's inner thoughts. "We haven't seen any troops from Hoshido either."

"Yeah… It's almost as if they want us to enter the village," Corrin replied. _Could this be some sort of trap?_ The prince was beginning to feel nervous. He had expected to meet with a guard patrol before he entered the village, so even if the Kitsune refused to see him, he thought that at worst, he would just be prevented from progressing any farther up the mountain. He did not see why the Kitsune would go through the trouble of luring him into a trap just to eliminate him.

Just then, a figure emerged from the village and headed towards the group. He wore a hood, had long, sharp claws, and had a bushy, orange tail.

"Prince Corrin?" the figure asked as he looked Corrin over. "We've been expecting you. Chief Kaden would like to meet with you."

Corrin blinked in surprise. _Why does the chief want to see me? Shouldn't it be the other way around? And why have they been 'expecting me?'_

"Wait," Takumi interrupted. "There should have been some Hoshidan soldiers here. Where are they now? If you're luring us into a trap, you'll be sorry."

The kitsune frowned, baring his fangs. "There are no Hoshidan soldiers. They are not welcome here. Now come with me."

Corrin and Takumi shared a glance before deciding to follow the kitsune. As they made their way through the village and towards the longhall which Corrin assumed was the chief's residence, groups of kitsune gathered to watch the column. Most of them stared curiously, though Corrin was met with plenty of threatening glares as well.

The kitsune leading them stopped when they reached the entrance to the longhall. "Chief Kaden is waiting. Leave your troops out here."

Corrin nodded as he dismounted from his horse and prepared to enter. Takumi made to follow, but he was stopped by the Kitsune.

"Chief Kaden would like to see Prince Corrin, and Prince Corrin alone."

"Excuse me? Do you know who I am?" Takumi growled. "I am Prince Takumi of Hoshido! You will not speak to me in that way, cretin."

Corrin turned to the kitsune. "I would like my siblings to accompany me. I promise that they will not cause any problems."

The Kitsune narrowed his eyes at Takumi's outburst, clearly not believing Corrin's reassuring words, but he eventually relented. "Fine. Go in."

Corrin nodded in thanks, but as he prepared to enter the longhall, the door burst open and something hard ran into him.

"Hey, watch where you're - Huh? Corrin?"

"Rinkah? What are you doing here?"

The blonde woman frowned. "I was sent by my father to discuss something with Chief Kaden… Relating to the upheaval a certain someone caused recently."

"Ah, I see… And what exactly did you talk about? Is your tribe going to side with Hoshido, or will you join me in ending this pointless war?"

"The Fire Tribe will support Hoshido, at least on the surface," Rinkah said. "Though we probably won't move against you if it comes down to it."

"I see… And you? Why don't you join us, then? We could use all the help we can get. Besides, you and I are friends, no?" Corrin asked, clearly cognizant of their shared history.

Rinkah scowled at him. "Look, I'm grateful to you for saving my life, but don't expect any favors from me. I can't join you if the Fire Tribe has agreed to support Hoshido."

"You sound afraid to me," Takumi cut in. "You're not scared to fight against the might of Hoshido, are you?"

Rinkah's eyes widened in surprise as she noticed the Hoshidan Prince for the first time. "Prince Takumi?"

"I-I'm here too!" Sakura piped up from behind Corrin.

"You see?" Corrin began with a smirk. "Even Prince Takumi and Princess Sakura have recognized my greatness. It's only a matter of time when the whole continent will be at my feet, so why don't you make the wise decision and just join us now?"

"You sure think highly of yourself," Rinkah said. "Anyway, my answer is still no… Though I suppose if you are able to convince Chief Kaden to join you, I might change my mind."

"Fine, then. I'll do just that. Now if you'll excuse me," Corrin decided as he entered the longhall.

The hall itself wasn't very grand, and the interior appeared to be not too different from that of a standard tavern's. Seated at a large table in the middle of the room was the man Corrin assumed was Chief Kaden, and across from him was a female Kitsune with blonde hair and wild eyes. She turned around when Corrin's group entered, and her golden eyes widened when she saw the prince.

"Ah, welcome! Please, make yourselves at home," Kaden called out as the royals entered. "Excuse my guest, if you will. She just refuses to leave…"

"Why would I leave now that _he's_ here?" the female Kitsune cried out, pointing to Corrin animatedly. "I told you he'd show up eventually!"

"Anyone with half a brain knew that Prince Corrin's revolutionary army would ask for the great Kaden's help at some point," Kaden replied sourly. "There is no way that this automatically validates every other insane thing you've been saying."

"Uh, I'm sorry, but who are you?" Corrin asked the woman as he took a seat at the table, his siblings and Azura following.

The female Kitsune leaned in and stared at Corrin, her face lighting up with excitement. "Wow, you were actually really cute when you were younger!"

"E-excuse me?" Corrin sputtered, bewildered.

Kaden sighed. "Gods, why are you doing this to me? Just because you're a fellow Kitsune doesn't mean I have to stand for this!"

The female Kitsune frowned. "Don't be so angry, Daddy. We are _all_ family after all, aren't we?"

"Can someone explain what the hell is going on here?" Takumi demanded.

"Yes!" the blonde Kitsune exclaimed as she stood up from her seat. "My name is Selkie, and I am the daughter of Chief Kaden and Princess Hinoka of Hoshido! Nice to meet you!"

Kaden groaned and slapped his face with his palm while Corrin and the rest of the royals stared dumbly at the girl.

"... What?" Takumi finally managed. "Are you right in the head?"

"I'm sorry about this," Kaden apologized, "but I just couldn't get her to leave."

"Why don't you believe me!" Selkie yelled. "I swear, I'm telling the truth! How else would I know about your secret relationship with the princess, right, Daddy?"

"Don't blurt that out loud!" Kaden shouted indignantly as his face flushed red.

"S-secret relationship?" Takumi repeated, still unsure of what was going on.

"Look, it's not what you think," Kaden tried to explain. "Hinoka and I are just good friends, and she comes to visit a lot… Well, we're _really_ good friends, I guess…"

"By the gods…" the Hoshidan sniper muttered.

"This is all quite interesting," Corrin started as he finally recovered from the shock of the situation, "but can this farce wait? I've come to discuss an important matter with Chief Kaden, and this seems like it has nothing to do with our current predicament."

"It has everything to do with it!" Selkie protested as she slammed her palms on the table. "I come from the future, and you're making a terrible mistake, Uncle Corrin!"

 _Uncle…?_ "Okay… And what would this mistake be?"

"You can't side with Hoshido! Everyone you know and love will die!"

"What are you on about?"

Selkie appeared to have calmed down, and she took a seat at the table. "I told you I was from the future, right? Well, I can tell you right now that your decision to side with Hoshido won't end well for your Nohrian or your Hoshidan families, and it won't end well for you either. You'll all die."

"Wait just a second," Elise interrupted. "Corrin isn't siding with Hoshido. He's trying to end this war! Right, Brother?"

Corrin nodded, and Kaden sighed again. "Selkie, weren't you listening to a word Rinkah said when she was in here?"

"Huh? Not really… I was too pissed off at her for telling me to shut up and interrupting my conversation with you!"

"Well, you're wrong," Elise pouted. "Corrin would never abandon his Nohrian family and side with Hoshido."

Selkie stared at Elise, a look of wonder on her face. "You're Princess Elise, right? The one who… Oh, never mind that! I'm just glad that Uncle Corrin has chosen to take a different path than the one he took in my future. Whew, looks like my work here is done."

"You are truly insane, aren't you?" Kaden asked as he regarded Selkie with a look somewhere in between caution and pity.

Takumi nodded. "I don't know what the fuck you have been going on about, but there is no way in hell that you came from the future. That just isn't possible; everybody knows that."

Selkie grit her teeth, baring her fangs. "Why won't you all just believe me? You seriously don't know about the Deeprealms?"

"I've heard of them," Corrin said. "They're supposedly portals into other worlds that can be opened up through the use of magic, but they're nothing but myths. You're saying you came from one of them? Is that how you traveled through time?"

Selkie nodded, then glanced at Azura. Corrin followed her gaze.

"Azura…?"

The blue-haired princess seemed uncomfortable. "... I think she is telling the truth, Corrin. I know of the Deeprealms, and I also know that they do, in fact, exist. I was planning on discussing this topic with you at a later time."

Selkie grinned. "See? I told you I wasn't lying!"

Corrin frowned. He didn't see why Azura would lie about this, and if something magical and impossible like the Deeprealms did actually exist, then it was entirely feasible that someone would be able to travel across time using them. However, he wasn't aware that Azura knew anything about them in the first place, and he wondered why exactly it was that she seemed so knowledgeable on the subject.

"So, that means you really are my daughter?" Kaden said, exasperated.

Selkie smiled at him. "Yep! And Princess Hinoka happens to be my mother, so I guess your secret relationship worked out in the end!"

"I told you not to talk about that!" Kaden shouted as he blushed again. "... Anyway, we should really get back to the matter at hand. I assume you've come to ask for my tribe's cooperation, Prince Corrin?"

Corrin nodded. "Yes. I know that the Kitsune aren't exactly friends of the Hoshidan government, and if you join me, I'll end this war and make sure that you get whatever you and your clan desire, including being left alone by Hoshidan soldiers. Will you fight with me?"

"Of course he will!" Selkie answered in place of Kaden. "He _is_ your brother-in-law, after all."

Kaden shot his daughter an annoyed glare. "Let's not jump to conclusions just yet…"

However, before Kaden could say any more, the Kitsune who had led Corrin to the longhall burst into the building.

"Chief Kaden! The Hoshidan military has been spotted ascending the mountain!"

Kaden laughed. "Don't make such a fuss, Erwin. Just deal with them as usual, right? Do you really need me for this?"

Erwin's face grew dark. "It won't be as usual, Chief… They've brought quite a bit more men this time. I think you'd better see for yourself."

"Fine," Kaden sighed as he got up. "Excuse me, Corrin, but our conversation will have to wait."

"Wait," Corrin stopped the chief as he too stood up. "If my army aids you in repelling these Hoshidans, will you help me in return?"

Kaden looked thoughtful. "... Maybe. It certainly wouldn't hurt your chances, I'll tell you that."

The group then headed out and followed Erwin to a section of the village which overlooked the mountain trail. When they got there, they found numerous Kitsune and a handful of Corrin's soldiers staring down in amazement and shock at the the huge column of men traversing the mountain.

"Uh, oh." Kaden grimaced as he realized the gravity of the situation.

"There's got to be at least four hundred soldiers in that column," Takumi observed with a wince.

Selkie turned to Corrin. "Uncle Corrin, you're a master tactician, r-right? You'll beat them, won't you?!"

"You don't sound very confident in me," Corrin said, then broke out into a grin. "But I do love a good challenge. Let's show these fools not to underestimate Prince Corrin. Kaden, if you're willing, I'll take command here."

Kaden nodded. "Sure, sure. If you can beat those guys, we'll follow your orders."

"All right," Corrin said as he unsheathed Yato. The golden blade glimmered in the sunlight and reflected the falling cherry blossom petals. "It's time."


	4. Blood for the Kitsune

Kaden eyed the advancing troops nervously as he bit his lip. His Kitsune had survived every Hoshidan invasion thus far, but this was something else entirely. He had a feeling that the troops were mostly here for Corrin and not him, but he had no doubt that they would also love to exact revenge on the Kitsune for the many Hoshidan soldiers the clan had killed in the past.

"Kaden? Are you listening?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. You said that you want the Kitsune to head towards the base of the mountain, right?"

Corrin nodded. "Your men know this mountain best, so you can make it down there and outflank them pretty quickly."

"That's true, but… There's still _four hundred of them_. We can't do much against those numbers!"

"Well, you don't have to… Not really, at least. You're going to use your illusory abilities to make it look like there is a large force attacking their rear. This will cause confusion in their ranks."

Kaden sighed. "Okay, fine. Just don't expect too much, yeah?"

"C'mon, don't be so pessimistic, Daddy! This isn't like you," Selkie said, trying to cheer the chief up. "I'm sure we can do this if Uncle Corrin is leading us!"

"Just trust in my strategy," Corrin said with a confident smile. "While you're doing that, I'll send my infantry to their vanguard and catch them off-balance there. To further increase the confusion, I'll also send my pegasus riders through the forest and attack their center. The enemy will be watching the skies for pegasi, so they'll never expect them to come riding out of the woods like some sort of Nohrian cavalry force."

"And if that's not enough…?" Kaden asked, his ears drooping.

"Then we'll all regroup and form up in the village. That's why I had you evacuate most of your citizens. There's a good chance that we'll be forced to that point, though hopefully their ranks will be thinned by then."

Takumi approached the trio, his Fujin Yumi in hand. "It's about time we got going, isn't it?"

"Yes," Corrin agreed. "Kaden, get moving. Remember, you're fighting for your village and the lives of your clansmen."

Kaden perked up a bit as he drew in a breath and prepared himself. "Right. You can count on me, Corrin."

The chief and his daughter then ran off to gather the Kitsune, and Takumi frowned.

"Do you really think we have a chance?"

"Of course we have a chance," Corrin replied, then grinned, baring his fangs. "A small one, that is."

Takumi's frown deepened. "This is just a game to you, isn't it? You and I don't have to worry about being killed by the Hoshidans, but our soldiers will pay for any mistakes in our strategy with their lives. Keep that in mind."

"That's surprisingly mature of you to say, Takumi," Azura observed as she walked over with Elise and Sakura.

Takumi glared at her. "Are you implying that I'm normally immature?"

"If she is, then she would be right," Corrin said. "But don't worry, I fully understand what I'm doing. I wouldn't go so far as to say that I think war is a game… But this is my opportunity to prove myself, both to you as well as to Ryoma, Xander, Father, and everyone else who is watching what our army will do. I cannot and will not fail."

"Hmph. Good enough for me, I guess," Takumi decided as he walked off. "I'll go get the archer corps ready."

Elise grabbed Corrin's hand. "Don't worry, Brother! We'll be at your side no matter what happens!"

"Y-yes…" Sakura agreed as she wrung her hands around her festal nervously.

"Thank you, both of you," Corrin said as he smiled. "I couldn't ask for better sisters."

"Your Grace." Kaze appeared on the scene. "All preparations are complete. Give the word, and the pegasi will begin to move out."

"Good," Corrin nodded as he and Kaze began walking towards where his soldiers were gathered in the center of the hamlet.

When they got to the main square of the village, Subaki approached them and saluted. "Prince Corrin, we are ready to advance."

"All right, then. You know what to do: ride through the forest and flank their center from both sides, got it? Wait until you see confusion spreading throughout their ranks. That's when you'll know that our assault has begun."

"Of course. We will carry out your orders to perfection, Your Grace," Subaki replied confidently as he mounted his pegasus and grasped his lance.

The pegasus knights rode off, and Corrin headed towards the remaining, non-mounted soldiers. The archers would be led by Takumi, and they would stay at the top of the mountain and fire down at the enemy. The rest of the soldiers would charge the enemy frontlines once the fighting began.

Corrin mounted his horse, drew his weapon, and led his troops forward. He felt oddly at ease riding at the front, and he figured it was because Takumi had informed him that the Hoshidans had strict orders not to kill him, so he wasn't in mortal peril or anything even if he lost. _Still, I should be cautious. You never know what a man who feels his life is in danger will do._

When Corrin's force finally sighted the enemy, he was glad to see that their structure had shifted slightly. Murmuring could be heard among them, as if they were passing a message through the column, and some of the soldiers kept turning around to see what was going on in the back.

 _That's our cue to attack._ Corrin raised his sword, its golden hue reflecting the rays of the sun. "All forces, charge!"

Corrin's men yelled out various battle cries as they ran towards the enemy. Corrin hung back for a bit before he too sped forwards, his war horse whinnying as he approached the enemy.

As Corrin's sword clashed with an enemy lance, the battlefield engulfed the prince's senses. He roared as he hacked through the enemy, adrenaline coursing through his dragon blood. His Yato shrieked as it sliced through armor and metal, and as Corrin rode through his enemies with unforgiving vigor, he vaguely noticed Kaze flitting in and out of the battle, slicing open unsuspecting soldiers.

Corrin cut through another soldier, Yato slicing the man open from his shoulder to his waist. Morbidly, the prince noticed that he felt a strange sensation of joy every time he killed. He also noticed that this battle felt easier than his previous fight in Izumo. It was no surprise that he was outmatching most of his enemies, as he was a mounted unit and most of the enemy were on foot, giving him a maneuverability advantage. Corrin had also been personally trained in mounted combat and swordplay by Crown Prince Xander, who was widely regarded as the best swordsman in all of Nohr.

Still, Corrin felt that this fight was too easy. It was his first large-scale conflict, and he did not expect things to be as simple as kill one enemy and then move onto the next. Corrin was also aware of the intense heat emanating from his dragonstone necklace, and he wondered if that had anything to do with his bloodlust and seemingly-increased strength.

Soon enough, however, the tide of the battle began to turn, and Corrin felt himself facing a larger volume of enemies. _Subaki and Kaden must have been forced to retreat at this point._

"All forces, retreat!" Corrin shouted over the din of the battlefield, holding his golden Yato up as a beacon. War horns sounded, and he then urged his mount back towards the village, hoping that most of his men would follow.

After a scrambled, fighting retreat, Corrin and his infantry force made it back to the village, the enemy forces having decided not to chase them too furiously and take a breather instead. When he reached the town square, Corrin found that Subaki and Kaden had indeed returned.

"How did it go?" he asked.

"Not bad," Kaden replied with a smile. "We did a number on their rear."

"You should have seen us, Uncle!" Selkie cried out excitedly. "We were unstoppable! They didn't know what hit them!"

"Good." Corrin then turned to Subaki.

"Our forces also succeeded in completing our task, though it didn't go as perfectly as I had thought it would," the pegasus knight admitted. "We lost about a third of our riders."

"That's not too bad, considering the numbers we were up against," Corrin said. He then turned to the forces he had led. "It looks like the infantry suffered about the same portion of losses as you did, maybe a bit less. Either way, we'll have to make our final stand in village. It looks like my plan worked, though, so we won't have to face four hundred soldiers."

Takumi then strode into the village square, his face covered in a light sheen of sweat. "It looks like we were quite successful. The enemy has less than half of what they started with."

Corrin nodded in satisfaction as he noticed Elise and Sakura approaching and beginning to assist the rest of the healers.

"I took out twenty-nine by myself," Takumi bragged. "But I must admit… Brother, you were something else. You fought like a man possessed out there!"

"Heh, is that so? I'm unmatched on the battlefield as well off it, I guess," Corrin boasted as he smirked and puffed out his chest.

Takumi rolled his eyes. "Don't get too cocky. We still have almost two hundred soldiers we need to hold off before this is all over."

"Right. Let's form up, then."

The soldiers then began setting themselves up in accordance with Corrin's formation. The archers climbed rooftops, the pegasi took to the skies, and the rest of the army took up defensive positions in the main square. The Kitsune were positioned inside, around, and behind buildings, their purpose being to ambush the enemy with their illusions.

Soon enough, the Hoshidan forces climbed up the mountain and began pouring through the wooden gates of the village. They were met with a hailstorm of arrows, but the army seemed unperturbed as they charged through, heading straight for Corrin's troops. The two forces met and clashed in the town square, and the fierce battle resumed in earnest.

Once again, Corrin fought and slashed his way through the enemy ranks, his dragonstone glowing and his Yato crying out for blood. Kaze followed closely behind, providing support for his master. Jakob and Felicia had been ordered to hang back and guard Elise and Sakura, so Kaze was Corrin's sole retainer for the fight. Corrin pushed on, his war horse trampling a katana-wielding soldier as Corrin's sword beheaded another. The prince was carried by the flow of the fighting and soon found himself backed against a wall of one of the buildings. An enemy pegasus rider swooped down from above and tried to impale Corrin, but a golden blur shot out from the window in the house behind Corrin and slammed into the enemy, slamming her off her pegasus and onto the ground. Selkie undid her transformation and shot Corrin a grin before leaping over the corpse she created and heading back into the shadows.

Corrin took this chance to catch a breather, and he gingerly reached for his dragonstone necklace, slightly amazed at how hotly it was burning. However, Corrin suddenly felt the wind change in his direction, and he quickly pulled his head back as a sharp pain slashed across his face. The prince cursed as he rubbed at his stinging left eye, which was still intact but blinded by the blood flow from the nearby cut.

"You're lucky you dodged that," a gruff voice said as a crimson-clad ninja appeared on the scene. He had red hair, wore a black mask, and only had one working eye, and Corrin recognized him as Saizo, one of King Ryoma's retainers.

"Saizo," Kaze said as he too arrived. "What are you doing here?"

Saizo glared at his brother. "I am here to dispose of you two traitors."

"Leave now, Saizo." Kaze held up a shuriken between his pointer and middle fingers. "Or I will be forced to eliminate you."

"Don't make me laugh. Give yourselves up and I might go easy on you."

"So be it," Kaze said as he closed his eyes and frowned.

The green-haired ninja then disappeared, only to reappear behind Saizo and hurl a handful of shuriken at his back. However, Saizo anticipated this and easily blocked Kaze's projectiles with his wrist guard. Saizo then disappeared in a puff of smoke, reappearing a second later and slashing at Kaze with a blade hidden up his sleeve. Corrin's retainer barely managed to avoid the blow, though Saizo's blade did succeed in leaving a scratch on Kaze's neck.

Corrin used the distraction to charge towards Saizo, and the prince moved to impale the red-haired ninja on his divine blade. Unfortunately for Corrin, Saizo avoided the hit with time to spare and launched a flurry of shuriken at the prince's back, though most of the metal throwing stars simply bounced off Corrin's armor. Corrin urged his steed to a stop beside Kaze, and the pair tried to regain their bearings as they faced Saizo, their positions on the battlefield now reversed.

"Do you novices really believe that you can defeat me?" Saizo inquired, somewhat rhetorically. "You're loud and your moves are slow, Prince Traitor… And you, Kaze, don't forget who it was that taught you everything you know. Neither one of you stands a chance against me."

A deep frown marred Kaze's handsome face as he stood up, wiping the blood from his neck. "Stand back, Your Grace. I will make sure no harm comes to you."

"There's no way I'm going to let you fight him alone," Corrin replied as he dismounted.

"Alone or together, it doesn't matter," Saizo scoffed. "Prepare yourselves, fools."

The red-clad ninja then disappeared once again, and Corrin and Kaze braced themselves for the onslaught. A split-second later, Saizo reappeared, sending a fistful of shuriken hurtling towards Corrin as he himself moved towards Kaze, his wrist blade poised to slice open Kaze's throat.

Corrin brought up his arms to block the shuriken, managing to deflect a couple of them but failing to prevent a few from leaving scratches on his unprotected face and neck. He then grit his teeth as he concentrated his power on his dragonstone, and a draconic tail erupted from his backside. The appendage slammed into Saizo's side, catching the experienced ninja off-guard before he could land his strike on Kaze. Saizo's eyes widened as he tried to dodge the tail, and though he was able to avoid the brunt of the attack, his tunic was torn open on its side as he leapt away.

"What… What are you…?" Saizo asked incredulously as he stared at Corrin in shock.

Corrin opted not to answer, instead aiming his tail at Saizo once more. This time, however, the red-haired ninja was expecting the move, and he nimbly wove under the tail and shot a shuriken at Corrin's face. In order to prevent his eye from being put out for good this time, Corrin ducked. Though he avoided the shuriken, Corrin was then met with Saizo's boot in his face, and the prince was sent to the ground as the savage kick collided with his chin.

Corrin's tail dissipated as the prince tried to stop his head from spinning. He noticed Kaze coming to his defense and clashing wrist blades with Saizo, but it was clear that Ryoma's retainer had the upper hand. Corrin tried to stand up, but he was far too slow to rise. Kaze grunted in pain as Saizo's blade slashed across his shoulder, and the green-haired ninja was dispatched with a swift kick to the back of the neck. Kaze joined his master on the ground, though unlike with Corrin, Saizo's kick had completely knocked him out.

"Your turn, Traitor!" Saizo shouted as he lunged at Corrin.

 _Damn it, I don't have the energy to fully form my tail again… I guess this will have to do!_

Grabbing a fistful of the cherry blossom petals that littered the ground, Corrin threw it into Saizo's face as the ninja prepared to strike.

"What -" the ninja choked out as the petals obscured his vision, and that was all the time Corrin needed.

The prince roared as his dragonstone necklace bounced around wildly, and his hand formed into that of a dragon's. Corrin drove his clawed fist into Saizo's stomach, the force of the attack completely stopping Saizo's momentum. Corrin followed through with his punch, the muscles in his arm protesting angrily as they drove the huge draconic fist into the ninja. Saizo didn't even have the strength to cry out as Corrin's punch launched him at an incredible speed into the building Selkie had jumped out of, and the red-haired ninja was sent smashing through the wooden structure.

Corrin stared in muted surprise at his handiwork, then smirked. He roared in victory, his cheer momentarily cutting through the clamor of the battlefield.

* * *

"Stay back, Princess Sakura," Jakob cautioned as he hurled a knife at an encroaching ninja. The butler grimaced as the ninja easily side-stepped the projectile.

Despite the defensive formation Corrin's army had taken up in the hamlet, they still found it extremely difficult to prevent the enemy from swarming them due to the Hoshidans' superior numbers. Sakura had spent most of the battle towards the back, only darting out in order to heal injured allies. However, one such excursion had led to her current predicament, and she now found herself in the thick of it. Along with her two retainers, Sakura only had Jakob to guard her, and she herself had no combat abilities to speak of. Subaki and Hana were currently occupied fighting off the seemingly-endless horde, so Jakob and Sakura were left to fend for themselves as the ninja rushed towards them.

Jakob tossed another knife at the Hoshidan, but the ninja deflected it with a shuriken and then threw the metal star towards Jakob. The butler leapt to the side to dodge, but this action caused him to smack right into another enemy. Jakob didn't have any time to right himself, barely avoiding being impaled by his new enemy's naginata. Unfortunately, the naginata managed to cut open Jakob's side, causing the silver-haired man to cry out in pain. As he fell to the ground, Jakob flicked his wrist and embedded one of his knives into the Hoshidan's throat, killing him.

"Jakob, no!" Sakura cried out as she watched him fall. She tried to run and heal him, but the ninja appeared in front of her, blocking her path. Her eyes widened in horror as the ninja raised his fist in order to knock her out.

Sakura shut her eyes, preparing for the inevitable spike of pain. However, after a moment passed and nothing happened, she opened her eyes and saw Subaki and his pegasus. The red-haired rider's lance was impaled through the ninja's torso, and he gave Sakura a reassuring smile.

"Are you all right, Princess?"

Sakura looked away from the corpse. "Y-yes. Thank you."

"My pleasure," Subaki replied as he yanked his lance free. "Prince Takumi's retainers have arrived to help us, so I left Hana over there with them and came here."

Sakura nodded in thanks, then looked over at Jakob. The butler had a deep frown on his face, and he looked to be in great pain. He was holding his side, which was now red with blood. The princess rushed over to him and began to heal him with her festal.

"Please, Princess, don't trouble yourself. I will be fine," Jakob grunted as he tried to get to his feet.

Sakura shook her head. "Stay down, Jakob. This shouldn't t-take too long."

"Enemies approaching," Subaki warned as he dismounted from his pegasus. A group of three archers were rushing towards their position, so Subaki decided it was best not to make himself into a bigger target by taking to the air. "Stay there, Princess Sakura. I will protect you."

Subaki readied his lance as the trio approached. _I can't let them get into position in case they fire at Princess Sakura. I need to get in close and take them out from there._

The sky knight charged at the archers, not wanting to give them a chance to draw their bowstrings. As Subaki got in close, the first archer's eyes widened in surprise as he hurriedly tried to notch an arrow to his bow. However, Subaki was much faster, and the archer found himself impaled on a lance before he could complete his task. Subaki then moved on the next archer, who was currently in the process of aiming, an arrow already notched on his bow. At such a close range, Subaki lacked the time to put enough distance between them to fully dodge the arrow, so he threw his lance instead, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Sakura's retainer grinned in satisfaction as the lance tore into the enemy soldier's stomach, throwing him off balance and causing his arrow to fly off harmlessly into the distance.

Subaki's victory was short-lived. Immediately after the second archer had been felled, an arrow flew towards the sky knight, stabbing into his shoulder and sending him to the ground. With no weapon to defend himself and with the remaining archer rapidly notching another arrow for the killing blow, Subaki found himself in quite the pinch.

 _N-no… Is this really how I die?_ Subaki thought as he clenched his teeth through the pain and feebly attempted to get to his feet. _Princess Sakura… I'm sorry. I suppose I wasn't so perfect after all._

The sound of a bowstring being released cut through the air, and Subaki knew death was near. His senses heightened as his heart rate increased, and he heard Sakura calling out his name. The whizzing noise of a fast-approaching arrow slashed at his ears like some sort of horrible whistle, but the arrow itself never hit its mark. Instead, the projectile sailed wide, completely missing Subaki.

The red-haired knight looked up, and to his surprise, he saw that the archer had been killed. Standing atop the corpse was a muscular woman with pale blonde hair, and Subaki recognized her as Rinkah, daughter of the Flame Tribe's chieftain.

"Wow, you people really are hopeless," she observed as she hefted her bloodied club onto her shoulders. "Guess it's good that I stayed behind for a bit, huh?"

Subaki gingerly got to his feet as Sakura rushed over to heal him. "Thank you… Rinkah, was it? You saved my life."

"Yeah, don't mention it," she replied off-handedly. She then glanced over her shoulder, frowning as she noticed another group of soldiers approaching. "Besides, it isn't over yet. Better get ready."

* * *

The battle raged on for another hour before all was said and done. Eventually, despite suffering significant losses, Corrin's army had managed to overcome the enemy, and by the end of the fight, all of Hoshido's forces had either surrendered or been killed. Corrin himself only had light injuries, and he was glad to see that all of his siblings were safe as well. He had set up his command post in Kaden's longhall, and that was where he currently sat as he listened to the various post-battle reports.

"... And so we suffered minimal losses," Takumi concluded, referring to the squad of archers he led.

Corrin nodded, shifting in his seat. "At least one portion of our army wasn't almost completely destroyed, I guess."

"Would you stop moving around so much?" Oboro said from where she sat beside Corrin, a needle and thread in her hand. Corrin's cape had torn a bit during the battle, so Takumi's retainer had offered to repair it.

"Sorry," Corrin apologized as he glanced over his shoulder to observe Oboro's progress. "So, can you fix it? Or is it going to be permanently disfigured?"

"Please. Don't insult my skills," Oboro responded as she continued to work on the cape. "You'll really only be able to see a difference if you look closely. Otherwise, it should be as good as new."

"Why do you care so much about a dumb cape, anyway?" Takumi cut in. "I would be more worried about your face if I were you. That wound near your left eye is going to leave quite the scar."

"A scar is the mark of a true warrior," Corrin countered haughtily. His gaze then fell. "And this cape was a gift from my older brother."

Takumi looked away. "Crown Prince Xander? I see."

An awkward silence descended on the group for a few seconds before it was shattered by Kaden's sudden entrance.

"What's up! I'm back!"

"You seem to be in a much better mood," Corrin observed. "I take it things went well for the Kitsune?"

"Yep! We did pretty well, if I do say so myself," Selkie said with a grin as she popped out from behind her father.

Kaden nodded. "We barely lost any men. We trashed the enemy and looked damn good doing it too!"

"I'm sure you did. Now, about my proposal before the fight… Have you come to a decision? We both know that the Kitsune would have been exterminated if it weren't for me."

"Hmm… I guess this was kind of fun… All right, I'll help you," Kaden answered with a smile. "I can't promise you our entire fighting force, of course, but I can give you about thirty, and I'll throw myself in as well! Pretty good deal, huh?"

"You're going too?" Takumi questioned. "Don't you… You know, have a tribe to run?"

"Says the prince who's not even fighting for Hoshido anymore," Kaden parried. "But yeah, Erwin usually handles the day-to-day stuff, so I'm sure things will be fine even if I'm not here. An offer like this is just too interesting to pass up!"

"Yeah!" Selkie cheered along with her father. "I'll be coming along too, so be ready!"

Looking at Selkie, Corrin then remembered Azura and how the blue-haired princess said she knew something about these strange 'Deeprealms.' Corrin recalled seeing her shortly after the battle, singing to the healers as they tended to the wounded, but she seemed to have disappeared since.

"Someone bring Azura to me," Corrin said, wanting to unravel the mystery behind the Deeprealms as soon as possible. If he was to fight a war on two fronts, he couldn't have something like this looming over him the whole time as well.

"Sure!" Selkie responded as she bounded out of the longhall, nearly running into the group of people who were arriving at the same time.

Elise and Sakura entered the hall, their retainers (plus Felicia) following closely behind. Corrin also noticed that Rinkah was with them, which came as a bit of a surprise since he thought that she had left before the battle.

"Hi!" Elise greeted, though her voice was lacking some of the enthusiasm it usually carried. Corrin guessed that she and Sakura must have been exhausted after helping heal all the wounded. Izana's army did not come with many experienced healers, so Elise and Sakura had to do most of the recovery work by themselves.

"Hello. How are Kaze and Jakob?"

"They're fine. Kaze is asleep right now, but he should be up soon. Jakob is also resting, but he's awake and is being his usual grumpy self," Elise answered.

"Good… Sakura, is something wrong?" Corrin asked, noticing his Hoshidan sister's downcast expression.

"N-no!... It's just that… It's my f-fault Jakob was hurt, and Subaki and Rinkah fought to protect me too. I just wish I c-could have been more useful…"

"Well, your abilities helped them recover, right? Jakob will be all right, and Subaki and Rinkah look mostly fine to me," Corrin pointed out.

Sakura nodded, but she still looked to be a bit disappointed with herself.

Corrin then turned to Rinkah. "Speaking of… What are you doing here? I thought you left."

Rinkah snorted. "As if I could have left you all here by yourselves when I saw that huge army approaching… And you're lucky I stayed, too. Subaki here would have been a red pincushion if I didn't show up when I did."

"I wouldn't put it quite like that, but yes, Rinkah was a big help," Subaki admitted.

"I see," Corrin said. "Then does that mean you have decided to join us?"

"Are you kidding me? You think I want to go up against an army like that again?"

"Please reconsider," Subaki asked. "I've still got to pay you back for saving me, after all, and I can't do that if you leave."

Rinkah sighed. "... Fine, I guess I can stay and help for now. I suppose I still have someone _I_ need to pay back as well."

Corrin smirked. "Good. We're glad to have you with us."

Just then, Selkie returned with Azura in tow. "I brought her, Uncle Corrin!"

"Thank you. Azura, I called you here because you said you knew about the Deeprealms earlier. Care to tell us more?"

Azura frowned nervously. "I… There is only so much I can say, and I doubt you will believe me."

"If I've already decided to believe that Selkie came from the future, then nothing you say will be any more ridiculous," Corrin pointed out.

"I suppose… Well, in that case, you should know that I am originally from a Deeprealm as well. As are you, possibly."

Corrin narrowed his crimson eyes. "... What? I thought you were originally from Nohr."

"Yes, but I am not the child of King Garon. I was born in a kingdom in a different dimension. I am sure that Xander could tell you that I arrived with my mother when she came to Nohr. I was very young at the time, so I barely have any memories of my life outside of Nohr, but I know for a fact that I was born to a king and queen not of this world."

"So you were adopted by the Nohrian royal family," Corrin concluded. "... And you said that I am also from this alternate dimension?"

Azura nodded, her golden eyes unsure. "I believe so. My parents were the king and queen of this kingdom, but you… You were born to the god of that world. His name is Anankos."

"A… God?" Corrin repeated. All the eyes in the room were now on Azura, willing her to explain.

"Yes, a dragon god, to be more precise. That would explain why you are able to transform using that dragonstone," Azura said. "Your mother, Queen Mikoto, had to flee that world, just as my mother did. The difference was that my mother went to Nohr, while yours went to Hoshido."

"I see…" Corrin managed, unsure of how to feel about this revelation. "And do you have any proof of this?"

"... No. Only my word."

Corrin rested his chin on his fist. "I suppose you have no reason to lie to me… A god, huh? So does that mean that King Sumeragi is not my true father either?"

"No… Your father is King Garon, in more ways than one," Azura replied. "You see, the reason why our mothers had to flee that land was because your father, Anankos, went insane, destroying half the kingdom before disappearing. The cause of his bout of madness is still unknown, but I believe that Anankos' soul now resides within King Garon."

"Within Father?" Elise interrupted. "B-but how?"

"I am not sure how he did it, but King Garon and Anankos seem to be joined as one now," Azura continued. "This would explain his rapid shift in personality and appearance."

Corrin stood up, causing Oboro to frown. "None of this makes sense, actually. Why would Anankos go mad? Why would Father and Anankos join forces? Why would -"

"I'm sorry, but I don't know," Azura cut in before Corrin could ask any more questions. "This is the extent of my knowledge, and even that only comes from what my mother told me. I'm afraid the only living person who can answer your questions is King Garon himself."

Corrin grit his teeth and clenched his fists, then sat back down. _Father…_ "So, has Father become possessed by Anankos? Is there is still some way to save him?"

Azura shook her head. "My mother told me that Anankos could not leave that land, and therefore, it is not possible that he has taken full control of King Garon. Though it is likely that King Garon is being heavily influenced by Anankos, it is still Garon himself who has control and is making all the decisions."

"... This changes nothing," the red-eyed prince finally said after half a minute of silence. "Our goal remains the same. We were always planning on stopping Father's insane war by any means necessary."

"I still don't understand what _she_ has to do with all this," Takumi interjected, pointing to Selkie. "So, what, is she from your Deeprealm as well?"

"No," Azura answered. "Deeprealms are simply portals to different worlds, and while Corrin and I came from an entirely separate kingdom, Selkie has come from the same continent but from the future. Technically, that is still a different world from the one we are living in."

"Okay… But why exactly is she here again?" Takumi asked.

The group turned to look at Selkie, who seemed to be more interested in a stray dragonfly that had flown into the hall rather than their current conversation. She snapped back to attention once Takumi cleared his throat.

"Oh! Uh, well, like I said before, I came here with a group of friends to stop the destruction of the world."

Takumi squinted in disbelief. "Huh? Just what the hell are you saying?"

Selkie frowned in frustration. "I thought we went over this already! If Uncle Corrin sided with Hoshido, the whole world would be destroyed."

The sniper prince sighed. "Yes, but that's not an explanation. Why would Corrin's siding with Hoshido lead to the destruction of the world?"

"It's a long story, but basically, the war against Nohr forced Uncle Corrin to kill most of his siblings. His surviving siblings hated him for it, and eventually, the grief of the situation was too much to bear, and he turned into this giant dragon and went crazy and killed everybody."

"I did what?" Corrin asked with a frown.

Selkie grinned at him. "Hey, don't worry! Since you've decided to take on both Nohr and Hoshido instead of choosing one side, I'm sure that this future has been averted… Or at least I hope so, heh."

"I've got a question!" Elise chirped. "Why did you come back from the future? Even if you fix the problem here, would that really change _your_ future?"

"I guess…? I wasn't really paying much attention to the details when that Rainbow Sage guy explained it to us, but supposedly, Uncle Corrin's powers of destruction spanned across space and time or something."

Selkie's face then fell. "Besides, coming back here was definitely a better option than staying in a world where everyone I knew and loved was dead…"

"... Moving away from that cheerful topic," Corrin started, "you said that there were others who came with you?"

Selkie perked up. "Yep! A bunch of my friends came with me, but it looks like we all got separated when we went through the Deeprealm. They should be around here somewhere, though."

Corrin stood up as Oboro finally finished with his cape, and a determined glint flashed through his eyes. "All right, then. If we've already averted that future crisis, then we continue towards our original goal. Everyone, prepare to head out. We go to the Wind Tribe next."

As the group prepared to move out, Azura regarded Corrin with her sad, golden eyes.

 _Oh, Corrin… You do not realize that this path you have chosen may be the most difficult of them all. It it is up to you where we go from here, but that future Selkie spoke of… It may not be completely gone just yet._


	5. He'll Sail on That Wind

_A/N: It's been exactly a year since I updated this story... Well, if anyone's still reading this, hopefully the next update won't be as late as this one was._

* * *

Xander mounted his dark warhorse and scanned his army with his deep, brown eyes. Around nine thousand soldiers had been gathered together outside of Castle Krakenberg's gates, all of them prepped for war and ready to move out at a moment's notice. This was the Nohrian Continental Conquest Army's First Army, led by none other than Crown Prince Xander himself. The Second and Third Armies would be led by Generals Iago and Hans, and all together, Nohr's invading force numbered about twenty-seven thousand men, with a detachment of around five thousand remaining in Nohr to guard the borders.

"Ready to move out, Crown Prince Xander?"

Xander turned around, trying to suppress the scowl of disgust that made its way to his face every time he heard Iago's voice.

"What do you want, Iago?"

Xander noticed that Iago had brought someone with him. Beside the sorcerer was what appeared to be a young girl with wild, black hair which reminded him of Corrin's own hairstyle. She wore a strange outfit that gave off an air of mysticism, and her red eyes held a sense of maturity that Xander was surprised to see in one so young.

"Ah, I came to offer a gift," Iago answered, gesturing to the girl beside him, though the girl herself seemed annoyed at being referred to in such a manner.

Xander frowned. "What?"

"This is Nyx. I would like you to take her with you as you march," Iago clarified. "She is a powerful sorcerer as well as an oracle of sorts. I am sure that she will prove herself to be very useful in your journey."

"I've no need for soothsayers, especially not ones who are little girls," the Crown Prince replied.

"I am no little girl," Nyx said, speaking up for the first time. "In fact, you yourself are a mere child from my point of view… Your Grace."

"... Excuse me?"

"She speaks the truth, Your Grace," Iago stated. "Nyx is much older than any of us, though a curse inflicted upon her causes her childlike appearance. Do not be fooled, however. She is very capable in battle."

"Is that so? Still, I do not require her services. Now, if you would, please leave my sight."

"But Your Grace -"

"Did you not hear me the first time!?" Xander roared, startling both Iago and Nyx. He quickly calmed down and regained his composure, internally cursing himself for momentarily losing control. That seemed to be happening a lot these days.

"Apologies," Xander said. "I suppose I can take her with me if it will get you to stop pestering me… Now leave me be."

Iago bowed and slunk away, leaving Xander and Nyx alone together as the rest of the army prepared to move out.

"Don't think I don't know what you are," Xander said to her. "Iago sent you to spy on me, did he not? Well, you will be disappointed if you think you will find anything worthwhile to report here."

Nyx scowled. "No doubt that was the snake's intention… Though I do not plan on reporting anything to him. I owe him nothing."

Xander was surprised to hear her speaking so disparagingly of Iago. He had thought Nyx to be nothing more than another one of Iago's devious servants, but it appears that he had misjudged her.

"Oh? Then why are you here?"

"I am searching for something, and traveling with an army which is planning on crossing the continent is a good way to cover a lot of ground," she replied, her red eyes not giving away anything. "I agreed to Iago's request because it is in my own best interests, nothing more. He may think that he is using me, but in truth, I am the one using him."

"I see." Xander was not fond of Iago and his ilk because of how deceptive and slimy they were, but he couldn't help but feel some satisfaction when Iago was the one being stabbed in the back. "In that case, make yourself at home. But I doubt an army on the march will be very comfortable for a little girl."

"I am not a little girl!"

"Right, my apologies… It's just that your appearance can be very convincing."

"I understand," Nyx said, her tone returning to normal. "The object I am searching for is related to that, in fact. Iago said that he knew the location of this object, but I am certain that he is lying in order to get me to bow to his whims."

"Knowing Iago, that is probably the case," Xander agreed. "Speaking of Iago… How is it that you know him? I did not think him the type of have many friends."

"He and I are far from friends," Nyx corrected. "But we are acquaintances, I suppose. For a brief period of time, I taught at a magical academy here in Nohr. Iago was a student there, and though I did not know him well, he was the academy's most adept pupil, and so the two of us spent some time together. That is also why he knows of my… Circumstances."

"Interesting… I was never very adept at magical studies, so I am sure that whatever it is you are searching for is beyond my comprehension," Xander replied as he glanced over his army again. "Even so, if you require any assistance, I will see what I can do."

"Thank you… And I suppose I _was_ sent here to help you as well, so if you have need of my abilities, I am sure there is something I can do."

"The offer is appreciated, but as I said, I put no stock in soothsayers," the blond prince told her.

"Is that so?" Nyx asked, her eyes twinkling. "It seems to me that you are very conflicted, Crown Prince. People like you who have no idea what to do next are normally the ones most in need of guidance."

Xander's eyes darkened. "... I have said all I have to say on the matter. Good day to you."

He then rode off to speak with the commanders of his army and prepare them for march. Nyx watched him go, remembering the troubled look in his brown eyes.

 _The two of us are far more similar than you realize, Crown Prince Xander… Though I hope for your sake, you do not go down the same path I did._

* * *

"See? I told you it would be fun!"

Ryoma laughed. "I did not doubt the 'funness' of a boat ride through the canals, Scarlet. I simply said that it would take up a lot of time when we have other, more important matters to attend to."

"Yeah, but your exact words were a 'waste of time.' If you had fun, it couldn't have been a waste, could it?"

The Hoshidan King sighed. "I suppose not."

Scarlet grinned. "Exactly!"

"Even so, I think we should focus on the more important issue at hand. As entertaining as this has been, a week has passed and I have not received a clear answer about Cheve's position in this conflict."

The wyvern knight's expression grew more serious. "The other knight companies had to come to a consensus before I said anything to you. Though I am the leader of the resistance, I can't make decisions by myself."

"Yes, but I really must be returning to Hoshido soon. In case you've forgotten, I am fighting a war right now."

"And in case _you've_ forgotten, we have our own issues to worry about," Scarlet countered. "I don't like Nohr any more than you do, but if I join Hoshido, you're going to need a big portion of our forces to help your army, right? If that's the case, then who will stay behind and defend Cheve itself? The Royal Hoshidan Defense Front is already heavily outnumbered, so it's not as if you could spare any soldiers. What happens when King Garon decides to punish Cheve for siding with Hoshido?"

Ryoma didn't know what to say; she had brought up excellent points. "Scarlet… You have my word that we will do our best to protect Cheve if you side with us. Through our military operations, I will personally make sure that Nohrian forces do not get close to -"

The Hoshidan King was cut off when Scarlet pressed her lips to his. Ryoma's brown eyes went wide with surprise. He stood still for half a second, unsure of what to make of the swirling emotions inside of him. However, he quickly came to his senses and lightly pushed Scarlet away.

"Ah… I'm sorry," Scarlet said, her face dropping. "I should have known better than to think that you would feel the same way I did… I'm sorry."

Ryoma was still in slight shock from the sudden kiss. "No… It is I who must apologize if I gave off the wrong impression. The truth is… There is already someone I love. I'm sorry."

Scarlet smiled sadly. "Of course you would already be taken… It was foolish of me to think otherwise."

She turned to leave, hiding her face from the king. "Then this is goodbye, Ryoma."

"Wait!" Ryoma called out, almost grabbing her but then thinking better of it. "Scarlet… Though I may not see you in the way you want me to, I still consider you a dear friend. And I do not want to see my friend killed by Nohr when I could help. Please, join us. I promise I will protect Cheve, and you as well."

Scarlet did not turn to face him. "I know you mean well, but you are the king of Hoshido. Your country comes first, and Cheve and I are nothing compared to Hoshido. I'm sorry, but I can't risk it. I wish you luck and success, Ryoma. I truly do."

Ryoma stood silently as Scarlet left him in the streets of Cheve. _I'm sorry, Yukimura, but I failed… Scarlet… I hope that you do not regret this decision._

* * *

Camilla leaned against the tree trunk, absently fingering the blade of her axe as she waited for Xander's First Army to ride down the road. She herself was technically part of the Third Army under the command of General Hans, which had moved out a few days prior, but Camilla's wyvern corps had received a special assignment from King Garon: eliminate Corrin.

Though she had no intention of following her father's orders, she also knew that she could not just outright ignore them. She decided that she would find out for herself once she saw Corrin again, but before that, she wanted to speak with her older brother and get his opinion. Xander had been more distant and irritable than usual lately, and Camilla knew that Corrin was the cause of this as well. Though Xander refused to admit it, he was slowly being torn apart by his internal struggle between his duty as Crown Prince and his love for his family.

 _I suppose he wouldn't be the best person to talk to if I'm looking for support, in that case,_ the purple-haired princess thought. _Still… There is no one else I can turn to._

Soon enough, the sound of hooves and footsteps that indicated an army on the march grew closer, and Xander appeared on the horizon. He sat atop his black warhorse, his dark armor gleaming and his face as stony as always. The Crown Prince blinked in surprise when approached and saw Camilla waiting.

"Camilla? What are you doing here?" he asked as he stopped beside her, signalling the rest of his army to keep moving. "I thought you left with General Hans…?"

"I'm on a separate mission, so I don't need to follow that brute around," Camilla answered. "I was actually here waiting for you."

"Oh? What for?"

"Don't act like you don't already know."

Xander sighed. "... I don't know what to say to you, Camilla. You cannot shift the weight of your task onto me."

"But I thought you were the Crown Prince, as well as our eldest brother? Isn't this your responsibility anyway?"

"Father ordered you to subdue Corrin, not me. I have much more important matters to worry about."

"Then why is it that you look so stressed? I know it's certainly not these 'more important matters' that are causing you so much trouble."

Xander frowned. "Why must everyone keep tormenting me about this? Can't you all just leave me be?!"

"Xander, you must take the lead on this matter," Camilla said, fixing him with a hard stare. "Father values your opinion much more than he does ours."

"I am aware of that, and that is why it is essential that I make the right choice. I'm sorry, but as of now, I don't know what to say to you."

Camilla sighed and leaned back against the tree. She absently twirled a lock of her wavy purple hair on a finger as she pursed her lip. "Fine, then. I will make my own decision, just as Elise has. Just don't complain when I do."

Xander perked up at the mention of Elise. "Wait, Elise simply said she was going to visit General Daniela's army on the border…"

"Are you really this distracted, Brother? She is obviously with Corrin by now."

"Impossible. Elise traveled all that way…? What if something happened to her? How do we know that she made it there safely? Even if she did, what if Corrin didn't accept her? What if -"

"Stop," Camilla interrupted. "You're rambling incoherently. No peasant or passing soldiers are going to stop or even recognize Elise, especially if she is disguised. As for Corrin, do you really think that he would turn her away? Would our brother really do such a thing?"

Xander paused. "... No. I did hear a rumor that he has allied himself with two of the Hoshidan royals, however, so I just didn't know if -"

"Again, there's no point in entertaining thoughts like that. You know as well as I do that Corrin is not our enemy."

"You say that, and yet Corrin has already killed two Nohrian soldiers," Xander countered. "It is clear that he is no friend of Nohr's."

"But he isn't a friend of Hoshido's either, and yet those two Hoshidan royals have still joined him. Why do you think that is?"

Xander screwed his eyes shut as if he were suffering from a massive headache. "Look… I don't know. It seems I don't know much of anything these days. Do what you will, Camilla, and I will do whatever is necessary."

With that, Xander rode off, not giving his sister a clear answer one way or another.

 _Well, I expected as much,_ Camilla mused to herself. _I suppose I really will just have to see for myself. Corrin… Wait for me._

* * *

"Shit," Takumi cursed as he reached the apex of the rocky cliff and got a clear view of the Wind Tribe's village below.

The Wind Tribe resided at the top of another rocky cliff, miles above the ground. It had taken Corrin's small army a while to reach the village, but once they descended the cliff they were currently on, they will have arrived.

"What's the problem?" Elise asked cheerily as she rode up beside the Hoshidan prince.

Takumi shot her an annoyed glare. "Are you blind? Can't you see that huge group of Hoshidan soldiers gathered in the village?"

"Ooooh, that," Elise replied breezily. "That does look bad."

"We're too late," Takumi lamented, kicking a pebble off the cliff in frustration.

"Calm yourselves," Corrin said as he arrived beside his siblings, his red eyes gleaming. "There's not that many of them."

"Still more than we have," Takumi spat.

"Since you took out those sentries we saw earlier, we have the element of surprise," Corrin stated, ignoring his younger brother's harsh tone. "We will simply destroy their forces in one fell swoop."

Takumi stared incredulously at the crimson-eyed prince. "... Okay, even if we somehow manage to take them by surprise, they still outnumber us. And isn't our goal here to recruit the Wind Tribe? How is slaughtering a troop of Hoshidan soldiers at their doorstep going to make them like us?"

Corrin smirked. "You're slow, Takumi. If we destroy those Hoshidans inside the Wind Tribe's own village, what do you think Hoshido will do to the Wind Tribe? At that point, the Wind Tribe will have no choice but to ally with us for their own safety."

"But what if the Wind Tribe decides to help Hoshido instead and turns against us during the battle?" Elise said with a frown. "Wouldn't that put us at even more of a disadvantage?"

"That's a possibility," Corrin was forced to acknowledge. "However, judging from their history, the Wind Tribe has never been particularly welcoming to Hoshidan rule. They've exercised a degree of autonomy thus far, and so I doubt they will choose to help Hoshido now."

"Yeah, but if you're threatening their way of life by essentially making them out to be enemies of Hoshido, they're not just going to sit there and let you do it," Takumi pointed out. "In this situation, it would be much more advantageous for them to side with Hoshido rather than sit by and do nothing. Any idiot can see that."

Corrin shrugged. "Maybe you two are right. However, news of our victory in Kitsune Hamlet should have reached here by now, so it's possible that they may actually see us as reliable allies. Also, everything I've read and heard about Fuga, the Wind Tribe's chief, seem to indicate that he is rather eccentric. What if he sees this as his opportunity to increase his clan's fame and influence? He'll get nothing out of helping Hoshido but the promise that Hoshido won't attack them, but if he sides with us… There will be a whole new world of possibilities open to him."

"Yeah, you're right!" Elise cheered. "I agree! Let's go and surprise them already!"

"You two are being far too optimistic, not to mention naive," Takumi persisted. "You can't seriously expect us to go through with this plan, can you?"

Corrin gave him a devilish smile. "I suppose not. If the Wind Tribe joins Hoshido during the fight, we'll simply destroy them as well. How about that?"

"Are you an idiot? How the hell are we supposed to do that! The element of surprise isn't enough to defeat both that Hoshidan regiment as well as the Wind Tribe!"

"Patience, Takumi," Corrin said, still smiling. "Did you really think my only plan was to rush down there and surprise them?"

Takumi frowned, irritated. "All right, Genius, let's hear the rest then."

"We'll wait for the rest of our army to catch up, and then I'll explain it to everyone."

When the remainder of Corrin's army had climbed most of the cliff, they stopped to rest at a flatter portion of the cliff, a few paces away from the apex. It was there that Corrin stood and explained his battle plan to all the soldiers.

"It's quite windy out here," he began, stating the obvious. The area around the Wind Tribe's village was notorious for its high winds. "Subaki, will the pegasi be able to fly here?"

Sakura's retainer thought for a moment before nodding. "A skilled rider should be able to hold fast through the wind, yes. Since our remaining sky knights are the survivors from the last conflict, they are quite good at handling a pegasus, so I am sure that we can manage. Pegasus themselves are also hardy creatures."

Corrin nodded. "Good. The sky knights will play a central role in my strategy."

"Er, I do not mean to disappoint you, Your Grace, but our numbers have depleted quite a bit since Kitsune Hamlet," Subaki told the prince. "I'm afraid we lack the manpower to act as the main force in this battle."

"It doesn't matter," Corrin responded. "Nobody will be able to touch you in this fight. Both the onmyoji as well as the enemy archers will have their projectiles thrown far off course in this wind, so you will be much harder to shoot down."

"What about enemy pegasi?" Elise interrupted, pointing out the flaw in the plan. Though the blonde princess appeared immature and distracted on the surface, she was surprisingly adept in battle tactics, just like her brothers. Corrin thought that she would make a fine strategist one day.

"Would the enemy really bring pegasi here, though?" Corrin posed. "Like Subaki pointed out, only skilled fliers can operate in these winds, so it's probable that the enemy did not bring many sky knights on this mission. However, in case they did, I do have a plan for that. Though archers shooting from the ground into the air will have their arrows' momentum and accuracy sapped by the winds, projectiles fired from above to below will not face as much resistance since they are not fighting against gravity. Therefore, I will have our archers take up positions on these cliffs above the village and shoot down any enemy sky knights. Can you handle that, Takumi?"

The Hoshidan prince nodded. "Easily."

"All right, then. While the archers are positioned up on the cliffs and our sky knights are picking off the enemies on the ground, the rest of us will attack from the ground using the element of surprise. Thanks to this strategy, we will have the overwhelming advantage even if the Wind Tribe decides to side with Hoshido. If that happens, do not show them any mercy."

After Corrin finished explaining the battle plan, the troops prepared to move out. Corrin stood at the top of the cliff and surveyed the village below once again. Roughly estimating, there appeared to be about two hundred Hoshidan troops stationed inside the town. Most of them were simply milling about, clearly not prepared for a fight at the moment. Based on what he had read and learned through his lessons, Corrin guessed that there were around three hundred soldiers in the Wind Tribe. Though that number would become problematic if it were to join forces with Hoshido, it would take the Wind Tribe quite a while to mobilize their troops, and by that time, the Hoshidans would have already been eliminated.

In truth, Corrin was pinning a large part of his plan on the hunch that the Wind Tribe would not bother to help Hoshido. Elise's counterpoint to this made sense, but it went against everything he had heard about the Wind Tribe and its chief, Fuga. Fuga was never one to just accept Hoshidan orders, and he seemed to have a penchant for the unpredictable and the unexpected.

 _It isn't like me to rely on volatile variables. Even so, with an army this small, I don't have a choice. I knew if I were to walk down this path, there would be huge risks associated with it._

Corrin steeled himself, then turned around to face his army, which was ready to move out. He nodded and gave the order to march, and Takumi and his snipers split off as the main group started down the mountain. Subaki and the sky knights remained behind, planning on joining the battle shortly after Corrin made contact with the enemy.

Soon enough, Corrin's army made it down the mountain and were at the gates of the Wind Tribe. The guards stationed at the village's entrance had long since rushed inside to alert the rest of their group, but since the long-distance sentries had already been eliminated, a warning this late wouldn't do them any good.

Corrin's army entered the village and found that most of the streets had been cleared of any stray residents. Hoshidan troops were scrambling to get into their formations, but Corrin did not see any Wind Tribe soldiers preparing for battle just yet. He had spotted a few of their guards as he entered the village, but they made no move to attack, so he had left them as they were.

"All troops: engage the enemy," Corrin began, pointing his golden Yato in the direction of the Hoshidans. "Kill all those who stand in our way!"

With that, the soldiers rushed forward, a mix of armored troops from Izumo and the wily fighters of Kitsune Hamlet. Corrin watched as his army tore into the unprepared Hoshidans. Though Hoshido had the numbers advantage yet again, they lacked a coherent structure, and so Corrin's formation was able to easily pick off and isolate small pockets of soldiers, slowly dismantling the enemy army. The faint flapping of pegasus wings sounded from above as Subaki and the sky knights joined the battle, further tipping the scales in Corrin's favor.

Though things were going well, Corrin sat atop his horse towards the back of the army, his red eyes nervously scanning the battlefield. He was constantly on the lookout for the first sign of Wind Tribe activity, as it could spell doom for him and his soldiers. He had given specific orders that the buildings in the village were not to be touched, so there was no reason for the Wind Tribe to attack unless they suddenly decided to help Hoshido, but Corrin could not help but remain on edge.

As the clashing of metal and the screams of war pierced the air around him, Corrin clenched the hilt of his sword when he noticed more and more Wind Tribe guards beginning to appear around the edges of the battlefield. They did not join the fight, but instead watched from the sidelines as if they were looking for the perfect opportunity to strike.

 _No, it could be that they are just observing. There's no need to assume that they have decided to help Hoshido. Besides, this battle will be over soon enough, and Hoshido has no chance at winning. The Wind Tribe can clearly see that._

"It does not look like they are going to attack," Jakob noted from his position beside Corrin. The butler was still slightly sore from his injuries in the last battle, so he had been given the task of watching Corrin's back rather than participating directly in the battle.

"If they were, I don't think they would have waited for us to slaughter the very troops they were going to help," Corrin agreed. "Let's hope they just remain spectators."

The battle raged on, and soon enough, the Hoshidan forces had been defeated. Corrin's strategy had proven to be sound, and when the Hoshidans lost over half their troops without having even put a dent into Corrin's army, the remainder of their soldiers had surrendered. Though the battle itself was won, Corrin was still unsure. The number of Wind Tribe soldiers watching the battle had steadily increased, and they watched Corrin's army like vultures.

 _Why are they still staring at us?_ Corrin wondered as his gaze flitted around the village. _And their numbers are only increasing… If they are mobilizing their troops, I need to strike first… But what if they're not? Damn it! I can't be indecisive right now._

As Corrin continued his internal struggle, he failed to notice one of the Wind Tribe soldiers approaching.

"Your Grace," Jakob said, snapping Corrin out of his thoughts and directing his attention towards the Wind Tribe fighter.

The soldier appeared to be a child, and he had long, chestnut-brown hair and a soft face. He wore the garb of an onmyoji and carried a fan with him, and despite his childlike visage, he had a stern expression on his face as if he were trying to give off an air of authority.

"Prince Corrin. Chief Fuga would like to see you."

Corrin paused for a moment, then nodded and followed the boy. If the Wind Tribe meant to attack, they would have done it already. Jakob accompanied Corrin, and in the corner of his eye, he saw his two other retainers arriving as well. The boy from the Wind Tribe made no move to prevent them from joining Corrin, so the red-eyed prince doubted that he was being led into a trap.

They crossed a bridge and made it to a large stone mansion. The building had many windows, allowing the constant winds to sweep inside the house as well. They entered into a large, open space, and a bald, muscular man sat cross-legged on a rug in the middle of the room. A handful of soldiers were present as well, though they did not appear to be hostile.

"Ah, so you're Prince Corrin," the bald man spoke. "I am Fuga, Chief of the Wind Tribe. Welcome to our village."

Corrin did not know what to make of the man. Fuga seemed to be unperturbed at the fact that Corrin had came into their village and killed an entire regiment of Hoshidan soldiers without their consent.

"Thank you," Corrin simply said, his tone wary. "I apologize for the… Clamor I may have caused."

"Hah! You did quite a bit more than simply create some clamor," Fuga corrected. "Tell me, boy: what sort of insanity came over you that you thought walking into my village and slaughtering a troop of Hoshidan soldiers was a good idea?"

"I… Well, I originally planned on asking you for your assistance," Corrin admitted, realizing how ridiculous he sounded. "But those Hoshidans got in the way, so I had to remove them first."

"Oh, I see." Fuga seemed amused, and it was clear that he wasn't taking Corrin seriously. "And what if the Wind Tribe had joined the Hoshidans against you? What then?"

Corrin decided not to tell Fuga that he was planning on killing them as well if it came down to that. "But that did not happen, so it is pointless to discuss it."

"You assumed that the Wind Tribe would not intervene, correct? Based on our reputation."

The prince nodded slowly. "Yes. It seems I was right to think so."

Fuga let out a bellowing laugh. "You fool! If only you knew how close to destruction you were… Did you really think that we would just sit by and allow you to kill an entire Hoshidan regiment inside of our village? Do you seriously think that King Ryoma would allow the Wind Tribe to go unpunished after that?"

"If it's so obvious, then why didn't you help them?" Corrin asked, beginning to grow annoyed with the chief.

"Hm… So you haven't met her yet, it seems. Understandable, considering that you were embroiled in battle and likely too busy to chat."

Corrin was confused. "Met whom?"

"That sky knight… Caeldori, I believe was her name," Fuga answered. "She claims to be from the future."

"Another one…?"

Fuga's eyes lit up. "So it seems she was not lying. She did say that you may have met with others from her group who traveled back in time."

"Yes, we did meet someone like that," Corrin confirmed. "So, is that the reason why you didn't attack us? Because this 'Caeldori' asked you not to?"

"More or less. Though her story seemed ridiculous at first, it also piqued my interest. That is why I decided to wait for the conclusion of your battle before making any moves."

 _So it seems I_ was _right about Fuga's peculiar nature,_ Corrin realized as he smiled to himself. _Though I also have to thank this girl for her help… Who knows what could have happened had the Wind Tribe fought against us as well._

"I assume that the other time traveler you met told you essentially the same thing that Caeldori told us. About a great war and the eventual destruction of the world and whatnot?" Fuga asked.

"Basically, though I'm not sure if I fully understand everything yet."

Fuga grinned. "Oh, but that is the fun of it… I think that you have the potential to make this world quite interesting, Prince Corrin."

"Interesting, huh? I agree," Corrin replied. "I could really use the Wind Tribe's strength, however. Though I have my brain and my Yato, I can't get through every trial that is to come with those two things alone. I won't give up my cause until my dying breath, but I'd rather it not get to that point."

Fuga remained silent for a moment, his eyes fixed on Corrin. The prince shifted uncomfortably, but before he could ask why the chief was staring at him, Fuga spoke.

"You know, you remind me of your father. He was an old friend of mine."

At first Corrin had thought Fuga was referring to Garon, but he quickly realized that was impossible.

"King Sumeragi."

A wistful glint appeared in Fuga's eye. "He was strong and determined, just like you are. Not to mention you both have the same hair…"

Corrin thought back to what Azura had told him, and he knew that King Sumeragi could not have been his birth father. Even so, he felt a swell of pride at being compared to a famous king, as well as the man his mother had loved.

Fuga stood up. "I remember the day Queen Mikoto first came to Castle Shirasagi. You were only an infant back then. I know that King Sumeragi was never your true father, but I also know that he loved you like his very own son. I wonder what he would say if he saw you now, fighting against Hoshidan troops and yet full of so much strength and dignity…"

Corrin stepped forward. "I don't know what King Sumeragi would have wanted for me, but I won't let his kingdom and Nohr destroy each other. If I have to cut through the entire Hoshidan army to prevent that from happening, then I will."

The Wind Tribe chieftain smiled. "I see… That certainly won't be easy, though I suppose I could lend a hand. I will give you two hundred of my tribe's soldiers."

Corrin had to stop his jaw from dropping. "That's half your fighting force… Are you sure you can spare the troops?"

"Of course. Despite what I may have said earlier, I doubt that Hoshido will divert its much-needed military strength to punish the Wind Tribe. Besides, it isn't as if we personally slaughtered their soldiers."

"I see… In that case, thank you for your generosity. I won't let it go to waste."

Fuga nodded. "I expect great things from you, Corrin, as I know your father would as well. Your army may stay here for a few days in order to restock on supplies and recover, but afterwards, you should be going. I hear that Nohr has finally launched its main invasion force."

"Right. Everything will be more difficult from here on, but I will prevail," Corrin stated, his tone dripping confidence. "Thank you again for everything."

Corrin walked out of the building, accompanied by his retainers and the same Wind Tribe guard who had led him there. The guard's name was Hayato, and he would apparently be leading the troops that Fuga was sending with Corrin. Though Hayato was only sixteen and looked even younger than that, Fuga had assured Corrin that the short onmyoji was very skilled.

"You should tell your army about our arrangement," Hayato said to Corrin once they had exited Fuga's residence. "When you're done, I'll be somewhere in the main square so we can talk about finding quarters for your troops."

Corrin nodded, and the two parted ways. The dragon prince's army was reforming at one end of the village, unsure of what they would be doing next. When Corrin returned, he found his siblings waiting impatiently at the head of the army.

"You three go inform the squads about what Fuga said," Corrin told his retainers. "I'll deal with my siblings."

Jakob, Felicia, and Kaze nodded and headed off to talk to the rest of the troops. Since Corrin's army was so small at the moment, there weren't many concrete divisions of soldiers. As it stood before the Wind Tribe's contribution, the army consisted of five groups: sky knights, led by Subaki; archers (along with a handful of onmyoji) led by Takumi; the Kitsune, led by Kaiden and Selkie; healers, led by Sakura and Elise; remaining foot soldiers, with command shared by Hana, Takumi's retainers, and Elise's retainers.

The Kitsune were by far the largest single group before the addition of the Wind Tribe, and the rest of the sections barely consisted of a handful of soldiers. Corrin planned to split up the Wind Tribe soldiers once they joined so that the division of power was more even, but that would have to wait until after everyone was informed of the situation.

"Where were you?" Takumi demanded. "What kind of commander runs off immediately after a battle?"

"I had business to attend to. The chief said that he would be willing to aid us," Corrin explained.

"That's great!" Elise grinned. "I told you it would all work out!"

"Thank the gods. We would have been royally screwed had the Wind Tribe decided to turn on us," Takumi said, more relieved than happy.

"What do we do now?" Sakura asked.

"Well, we will stay here for a few days to resupply and rest. After that, though, we'll need to get going. It appears the rumors that the Nohrian Continental Conquest Army is on the move are true."

Elise's face fell. "Does that mean we'll have to fight them too?"

Corrin nodded slowly. "Yes. I thought you understood that when you joined me."

"I know… But that doesn't mean that I have to like it."

"Oh, quit your whining," Takumi said. "Sakura and I have been fighting Hoshido this whole time, but do you see us complaining? I'm actually glad that I finally have the opportunity to stick a few arrows into Nohrian flesh."

"Either way, we'll try to avoid fighting as much as we can," Corrin decided. "Even with the addition of the Wind Tribe's troops, our army is still only about three hundred strong. We stand no chance in a traditional battle against any one of Nohr's armies, and the only reason we've been successful so far is because we had the element of surprise and we have only faced small squads."

"Each one of Nohr's armies is composed of about nine thousand soldiers," Azura interjected as she approached the group. "It is a good idea to avoid open conflict with them."

"Easy for you Nohrians to say," Takumi spat. "I think it's about time that we switched targets. Corrin, if your ultimate goal is to bring down King Garon, then we need to eliminate Nohr's military in order to get to him."

Corrin shook his head. "It's not that simple. If we only helped Hoshido, then we run the risk of making enemies out of all Nohrians and tipping the balance of power too far. There's also the fact that I was raised in Nohr, and I wouldn't particularly enjoy fighting against them."

"I don't understand. If the Nohrian king is our enemy, then what's wrong with giving Hoshido more power?" Takumi asked with a frown.

"Because I started this fight to stop both kingdoms from killing each other. Helping one and neglecting the other could completely destroy Nohr or Hoshido, which is the exact opposite of what I want."

"So you plan to sit back and let Nohr and Hoshido damage each other, then finish them both once they are sufficiently weakened?" Azura asked Corrin.

The red-eyed prince nodded. "That seems best to me. With our current numbers, we can't do much more."

Azura regarded him with her golden eyes. "You do realize that this course of action may in fact lead to the most bloodshed, right? This will prolong the war rather than stop it, and though your refraining from choosing a side may preserve your relationship with your siblings, it is ultimately the common soldier who suffers the most from this. Countless conscripts from both sides will die."

Corrin narrowed his eyes. "What are you saying? That I should choose a side? No. If I do that, then one kingdom will be devastated even if the other takes less damage. I fail to see how this results in less pain than my plan."

"I'm sorry if I offended you," Azura replied softly. "I did not mean to tell you what to do, but I just wanted you to see things from a different point of view."

"This is pointless," Takumi then said. "We're all talking as if our army can actually make a difference in this war. At the moment, all we can do is fight small groups of soldiers, and even that isn't sustainable because we usually take heavy casualties while doing so."

"Yes, which is why it's better to stay out of the main conflict for now," Corrin reiterated. "Once we leave this village, I am planning on heading towards Cheve. It would be best if we could convince them to fight for us, but even if they don't, we somehow need to seize the fortress located there, which is a key point of crossing between Nohr and Hoshido. Having control of that would significantly increase our power, even if we are lacking in pure numbers."

"Then we need to act quickly," Takumi realized. "All right, I think we've talked enough. Let's just resupply and move out as soon as possible."

Corrin agreed, and the group split off. Azura wandered off somewhere, Takumi left to fine tune his bow, and Elise corralled Sakura into joining her for lunch at a cafe she had spotted earlier. She invited Corrin as well, but he still had to talk with Hayato about logistical matters and then convey the information to the rest of the army.

The prince headed into the town and saw the small onmyoji standing by a fountain in the center of the square, the wind combing through his silky brown hair. Now that the battle was over and the village had been cleared off the corpses, people had begun to go about their business like normal again. The Wind Tribe was definitely made up of a hardy bunch.

Corrin and Hayato discussed where he and the soldiers would be staying, and they also talked about where to procure supplies and how much of everything they would need. The prince had always had good organizational and mathematical skills and Hayato was no slouch either, so it only took them about an hour or so to get a rough estimation of what supplies and how many of each they would need until they reached Cheve.

Hayato then left to gather the Wind Tribe soldiers who would be joining the army, leaving Corrin and Kaze (who had materialized beside Corrin early on in his conversation with Hayato) in the town square. The prince's stomach grumbled, and he realized that it was now late in the afternoon and he had still yet to eat. Corrin sent Kaze to inform the rest of the army where they would be staying. Apparently Fuga had already made most of the arrangements before he even spoke with Corrin, so the village itself was not taken by surprise at their sudden alliance with Corrin's forces.

The green-haired ninja bowed and disappeared with a puff of smoke, leaving Corrin alone in the square. He briefly wondered where Jakob and Felicia were before remembering that he told them to assist with the wounded once they completed their earlier task. Corrin himself had some free time, however, so he decided to remedy his growling stomach by ordering some sort of rice dish from an outdoor cafe. The owner refused to accept his payment, instead just saying how grateful he was that a prince graced the shop with his presence.

 _I guess news travels fast in this village,_ Corrin thought as he tried to get a firm hold on the chopsticks. _Damn it, I still can't use these things…_

Just as he had finally got the hang of the tricky utensils, Corrin noticed Subaki and a woman he didn't know approaching. She had long, red hair that fell past her waist, and the prince was momentarily mesmerized by her beauty. She wore the standard outfit of female Hoshidan sky knights, and she smiled when she saw Corrin.

"Apologies for disturbing you, Prince Corrin," Subaki began. "But there is someone I would like you to meet. This is Caeldori, and like Selkie, she is from the future."

Caeldori bowed politely. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Your Grace."

Corrin nodded. "Likewise. I heard about you from Chief Fuga, and I must thank you for your efforts in helping us secure the Wind Tribe's assistance."

"One more thing," Subaki cut in. "She… Also says that she is my daughter."

"Daughter…?"

"I am the daughter of Subaki and Rinkah of the Flame Tribe," Caeldori confirmed.

"Rinkah?" Corrin repeated, surprised. "I didn't know you two were like that, Subaki."

The red-haired sky knight blushed. "Er… We aren't."

"I believe that my parents have not been married at this point in time," Caeldori explained. "I don't know if my being here will change their relationship, but it is a risk I had to take. It is very important that I come back here and prevent the future from happening… But it appears that I had nothing to worry about after all, if what Father has told me is true."

"Yes, I am not siding with Hoshido, if that's what you're asking," Corrin said. "So you don't have to worry about me turning into a dragon and destroying everything or whatever."

"That's good to hear," Caeldori beamed. "Well… Since my task has already been accomplished, I would like to join your army and help you achieve the peace you are fighting for, if that's all right."

"Of course. We could always use more skilled soldiers."

Caeldori and Subaki then made their exit, leaving Corrin alone with his lunch and the infernal chopsticks that he was still struggling with. As he finally managed to pick up a piece of fish, Corrin thought back to what Selkie said about her future.

 _I wonder… Why didn't I take the path that Selkie and Caeldori thought I would? And is there a future where I sided with Nohr instead of Hoshido? What would have happened if I did that?_

He then recalled the decision he made back during the Battle of the Forking River, where he had refused to side with either kingdom.

 _And was that the right choice? If my siding with Hoshido caused the deaths of my family from Nohr, then what will happen if I side against both Hoshido and Nohr…?_

A drop of water landed on his hand, and Corrin cursed silently as he looked up and saw dark storm clouds. He hurried up and finished as much of his food as he could before it began to rain in full, then got up and began walking back towards the barracks Hayato had set up for his soldiers.

 _I suppose there is no point in worrying about what may or may not happen. The only important thing is that I am the master of my own fate. I must control what happens from this point on._

With a clap of thunder, the rain began pouring down from the heavens.


End file.
